6R1PE  TOURE  AND 


IN   CALIFORNIA 


A  PRACTICAL  MANUAL  FOR  THE  GRAPE-GROWER  AND 
WINE-MAKER 


OEOROE        HUSIVTANISI 
NAPA,  CAL 


SAN  FRANCISCO 

PAYOT,  UPHAM  &  CO.,  PUBLISHERS 
204  Sansome  Street 

1888 


PRESERVATIr*- 

COPY  ADD: 

ORIGINAL  TO  BE 
RETAINED 


Entered,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1887,  by 

PAYOT,  UPHAM  &  COMPANY 
In  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington 


)MMERCIAL   PUBLISHING   COMPANY 

PRINTERS 
34   CALIFORNIA   STREET,    8.    F 


PREFACE. 

A  book,  specially  devoted  to  "Grape  Culture  and  Wine 
Making  in  California,"  would  seem  to  need  no  apology  for  its 
appearance,  however  much  the  author  may  do  so  for  under- 
taking the  task.  California  seems  to  him,  at  least,  as  "the 
chosen  land  of  the  Lord,"  the  great  Vmeland ;  and  the  in- 
dustry, now  only  in  its  first  stages  of  development,  destined 
to  overshadow  all  others.  It  has  already  assumed  dimensions, 
within  the  short  period  of  its  existence,  hardly  forty  years, 
that  our  European  brethren  can  not  believe  it,  and  a  smile  of 
incredulity  comes  to  their  lips  when  we  speak  of  vineyards  of 
several  thousand  acres,  with  a  product  of  millions  of  gallons 
per  annum. 

But,  while  fully  cognisant  -®f  <j>e  importance  of  these  large 
enterprises,  it  is  not  for  their  owners  that  this  little  volume  is 
written  specially.  The  millionaire  who  is  able  to  plant  and 
maintain  a  vineyard  of  several  thousand  acres,  can  and  should 
provide  the  best  and  most  scientific  skill  to  manage  his  vine- 
yard and  his  cellars;  it  will  be  the  wisest  and  most  economi- 
cal course  for  him,  he  can  afford  to  pay  high  salaries,  and  the 
most  costly  wineries,  provided  they  are  also  practical,  would 
be  a  good  investment  for  him.  We  have  thousands,  perhaps 
the  large  majority  of  our  wine  growers,  however,  who  are 
comparatively  poor  men,  many  of  whom  have  to  plant  their 
vineyards,  nay,  even  clear  the  land  for  them  with  their  own 
hands,  make  their  first  wine  in  a  wooden  shanty  with  a  rough 
lever  press,  and  work  their  way  up  by  slow  degrees  to  that 
competence  which  they  hope  to  gain  by  the-sweat  of  their 
brow.  Of  these,  many  bring  but  a  scanty  knowledge  to  their 
task;  and  yet  it  is  from  these,  who  cultivate  their  small  vine- 


IV  PREFACE. 

yards  with  unceasing  interest,  and  are  willing  to  watch  their 
wines  with  the  grestest  care  that  we  must  expect  our  choicest 
products.  To  help  and  serve  this  army  of  patient  toilers,  in 
whose  ranks  I  have  labored  for  forty  years,  here  and  in  Mis- 
souri, with  hand  and  brain,  is  the  object  and  aim  of  this  little 
book;  I  can  fully  sympathize  with  them,  because  I  had  to 
gather  what  little  knowledge  I  may  have,  piecemeal  and  by 
hard  practical  experience  in  an  almost  untrodden  field,  and  I 
wish  to  save  them  some  of  the  dear  bought  experience  which 
I  had  to  pass  through.  If  its  pages  become  a  practical  guide 
for  them,  by  which  they  can  plant  and  cultivate  their  vine- 
yards, prune  and  train  their  vines,  erect  their  wine  cellars 
when  they  need  them  and  are  able  to  build  them,  and  make 
good,  drinkable  and  saleable  wine,  my  chief  object  has  been 
accomplished.  To  do  this,  I  intend  to  be  as  concise  and 
clear  as  possible,  use  no  high-flown  language,  and  avoid  scien- 
tific terms  as  much  as  possible;  talk  as  the  plain,  practical 
farmer  to  his  co-laborers,  and  confine  myself  to  simple  facts, 
gathered  from  my  own  daily  practice  as  well  as  from  the 
practice  and  counsels  of  others  who  have  labored  long  and 
successfully  in  the  same  cause.  None  of  us  are  infallible, 
and  the  best  way  to  gain  knowledge  is  by  exchanging  ideas 
and  experience  among  ourselves,  comparing  notes  with  each 
other. 

And  this  is  especially  necessary  in  each  neighborhood,, 
each  valley  and  its  surrounding  hillsides  in  this,  the  brightest 
and  most  bountiful,  but  also  the  most  diversified  and  variable 
State  in  the  Union;  where  the  climatic  conditions  as  well  as 
the  soil  change  as  quickly,  according  to  each  location  as  in  a 
kaleidoscope.  This  makes  it  all  the  more  necessary,  that 
the  vintner  select  his  climate  and  soil  carefully;  and  again, 
that  he  chooses  such  varieties  as  are  adapted  to  his  soil  and 
climate.  Then  the  climatic  conditions  will  also  materially 
affect  his  operations  in  wine  making,  curing  raisins,  etc.,  in 


PREFACE.  V 

short  no  man  can  hold  fast  to  one  invariable  rule  in  this 
State,  but  must  vary  his  operations  with  the  location,  the 
soil,  the  product  of  each  season,  and  the  climatic  conditions 
prevailing  during  his  operations,  and  which  may  vary  every 
day  during  the  vintage.  And  therefore  this  will  be  a  Califor- 
nia book,  first  and  foremost.  I  am  fully  aware  that  French 
and  German,  Spanish,  Italians  and  Portuguese,  have  many 
eminent  men  who  have  compiled  the  experiences  of  centuries, 
and  from  which  we  can  learn  a  great  deal,  especially  in  mak- 
ing and  handling  wines.  But  while  I  value  it  highly,  and  am 
willing  to  profit  by  it,  yet  all  the  conditions  are  so  different 
there,  that  they  can  be  no  safe  guide  for  us.  Our  rainless 
summers,  the  character  of  our  grapes,  which  always  ripen, 
and  are  heavier  in  sugar,  while  they  may  lack  in  ferment  and 
sprightliness,  will  necessitate  different  handling,  and  I  believe 
that  three  seasons  of  active  experience  here,  will  enable  a  man 
with  good  sound  judgment  to  make  a  more  perfect  wine  from 
California  grapes,  than  twenty  years  of  practice  in  France  or 
Germany.  He  has  nothing  to  unlearn,  is  free  from  prejudices 
and  antiquated  methods,  and  is  therefore  more  likely  to  suc- 
ceed, than  the  one  who  comes  to  the  task  with  the  precon- 
ceived notion  that  he  knows  everything,  while  in  reality  he 
has  to  take  lessons  every  day.  Therefore,  though  I  will 
gladly  use  some  foreign  experience,  and  give  due  credit  for  it, 
this  little  volume  will  not  be  a  foreign  compilation,  but  a 
practical  record  of  California  experience,  in  the  vineyard  and 
wine  cellar.  That  this  may  be  concise,  useful,  and  offer 
such  assistance  as  practical  men  may  need  is  my  highest  am- 
bition. The  reader  must  not  expect  infallible  doctrines,  nor 
impractical  theories,  but  plain  rules,  variable  according  to 
circumstances,  and  given  in  plain  language,  without  poetic 
fiction  or  privilege.  I  shall  try  to  deal  with,  and  confine  my- 
self to  plain  facts  of  every  day  occurrence. 

But  while  its  principal  aim   shall   be  to   become  a  guide  to- 


VI  PREFACE. 

the  beginner,  I  also  hope  to  make  it  interesting  enough  for 
those  who  count  their  vineyards  by  the  hundreds  and  even 
thousands  of  acres.  I  hope  to  give  a  true  and  full  picture  of 
this  giant  industry,  none  the  less  gigantic  because  yet  in  its 
infancy,  and  which  owes  so  much  to  their  enthusiasm  and  en- 
terprise. They  will  furnish  the  wines  for  the  million,  and  it 
is  truly  a  noble  and  proud  task  to  furnish  to  every  laborer  a 
sound,  cheap  and  palatable  wine,  at  less  cost  than  tea  or  cof- 
fee. We  want  their  assistance  to  make  this  great  nation  tem- 
perate, convert  them  into  wine  drinkers,  instead  of  drinking 
so  called  brandy  and  whisky,  the  banes  of  so  many  otherwise 
happy  households.  And  for  this  object  we  may  safely  claim 
the  help  of  the  ladies  also.  I  am  proud  of  the  active  part  so 
many  of  them  have  already  taken  in  the  viticulture  of  Califor- 
nia. There  are  not  a  few  of  them  who  successfully  manage 
vineyards  and  wine  cellars  of  hundreds  of  acres,  and  hundreds 
of  thousands  of  gallons.  May  their  numbers  increase,  and 
they  become  our  helpmates  in  this  as  in  every  good  work.  I 
am  sure  that  I  commit  no  indiscretion  if  I  mention  the  names 
of  Mrs.  Kate  F.  Warfield  and  Mrs.  Hood  of  Sonoma  Valley, 
and  Mrs.  Weinberger  of  St.  Helena,  as  among  the  foremost 
in  this  State,  while  the  illustrious  example  of  Madame  la 
Duchess  de  Fitz  James,  who  has  already  replanted  about  two 
thousand  acres  destroyed  by  the  phylloxera,  on  her  estates  in 
Herault,  France,  has  given  the  results  of  her  experience  to  the 
public  in  several  books,  and  inspired  new  confidence  in  the 
industry  into  the  poor  despairing  peasantry  of  that  district, 
who  saw  their  only  means  of  livelihood  failing  them,  should 
not  be  forgetten  here.  I  use  the  term  "  illustrious  "  advisedly, 
not  in  reference  to  her  rank  ;  for  I  am  Republican  enough  to 
have  little  regard  for  the  accidental  privilege  of  noble  birth; 
but  a  woman  who  does  such  noble  work,  winds  a  more  shin- 
ing and  lasting  crescent  around  her  brow  than  monarchs  can 
confer,  and  birth  bestow,  and  is  worthy  to  be  counted  among 


PREFACE.  VII 

the  benefactors  of  mankind;  I  am  proud  of  the  privilege  of 
being  her  correspondent,  and  thus  acknowledging  her  noble 
efforts  in  our  cause. 

This  work  was  commenced  in  June,  when  the  greatest 
rush  of  vineyard  work  was  over,  written  in  my  cabin  in 
Chiles  Valley,  surrounded  by  vines,  where  practical  reference 
could  be  had  every  day  and  hour  to  the  operations  necessary 
among  them.  As  it  progressed,  I  became  convinced  more 
and  more  of  the  magnitude  of  the  subject,  and  the  impossibil- 
ity of  doing  it  full  justice  in  the  space  of  a  few  months^,  and  a 
few  hundred  pages.  I  hoped  to  complete  it  before  the  vin- 
tage, so  that  it  could  be  of  some  use  perhaps  during  its  pro- 
gress. But  unavoidable  delays  have  drawn  it  out  to  the  end 
of  the  vintage,  of  this  truly  abnormal  year,  abnormal  in  its 
late  and  destructive  frosts,  its  hot  winds  during  summer,  caus- 
ing a  great  deal  of  coulure  and  its  unusually  hot  weather 
during  the  vintage.  It  has  been  one  of  the  most  difficult 
seasons  to  handle  a  vineyard  and  wine  cellar,  which  will  ever 
occur  here,  I  trust,  and  has  taught  us  many  and  severe  les- 
sons, among  others  the  importance  of  thoughtful  pruning, 
close  attention  to  the  growing  crop,  and  diversity  of  varieties  in 
time  of  ripening,  so  that  we  are  not  compelled  to  crowd  the 
operations  of  months  into  a  few  weeks  ;  also  the  necessity  of 
commencing  the  vintage  as  soon  as  the  grapes  are  fairly  ripe  ; 
and  of  unceasing  work  during  wine  making.  Vintage  work 
commenced  in  Napa  Valley  about  the  middle  of  September, 
when  it  ought  to  have  commenced  a  week  sooner,  and  the 
hot  and  dry  weather  prevailing  during  its  entire  period  even 
until  now,  ripened  and  dried  up  the  grapes  to  a  certain  extent 
and  thus  fermentation  became  very  difficult,  especially  in 
large  establishments.  I  have  availed  myself  of  these  practical 
lessons,  I  hope  to  the  advantage  of  my  readers,  so  that  the 
delay  may  not  be  a  loss  altogether.  Still,  I  am  aware  that  it 
is  impossible  to  do  the  subject  full  justice,  and  am  far  from 


VIII  PREFACE. 

claiming  that  I  could  have  done  so.  Now,  when  my  task 
draws  to  its  close,  I  ask  their  kind  indulgence;  to  them  I 
must  leave  it  whether  it  has  been  done  well  or  ill.  I  can 
only  say  that  I  have  tried  my  best  to  be  useful  to  them  and 
to  the  industry  at  large. 

I  cannot  close  these  remarks  without  grateful  acknowledg- 
ments to  those  who  have  aided  so  materially,  by  their  work- 
ings and  contributions,  and  without  whose  help  my  task 
would  have  been  infinitely  more  difficult.  I  have  drawn 
freely  from  the  bulletins  and  report  of  viticultural  work  of 
Professor  Hilgard  of  our  State  University,  from  the  reports  of 
our  State  Board  of  Viticulture,  the  valuable  work  of  Mr.  E. 
H.  Rixford  -''The  Wine  Press  and  the  Cellar,"  from  the 
ampelographic  dictionary  of  Prof.  Hermann  Goethe,  and  the 
writings  of  Mr.  Chas.  A.  Wetmore.  I  am  also  indebted  for 
courtesies  and  valuable  information  to  Mr.  J.  H.  Wheeler, 
our  present  chief  viticultural  officer,  to  Mr.  C.  J,  Wetmore,  the 
Secretary  of  the  State  Board,  Mr.  W.  B.  West,  of  Stockton, 
Cal.,  Mr.  Horatio  P.  Livermore,  Mr.  H.  W.  Crabb,  Mr. 
Charles  Krug,  Mr.  J.  W.  Hale,  Superintendent  Barton  Vine- 
yard at  Fresno,  E.  M.  Maslin,  Secretary  State  Board  of 
Equalization;  Mr.  M.  Denicke,  Fresno  ;  Mr.  Juan  Gallegos, 
Mission  San  Jose;  Capt.  J.  W.  Mclntyre,  Vina;  Mr.  Shackle- 
ford,  Vina;  Mr.  Smith,  Vina;  Mr.  D.  M.  Cashin,  Secretary 
of  California  Winery  and  Security  Co.,  Mr.  Julius  Dresel,  of 
Sonoma,  and  many  others.  I  only  regret  that  I  could  not 
elicit  a  single  satisfactory  answer  responding  to  requests  for 
information  from  Los  Angeles,  as  I  was  anxious  to  have  the 
whole  State  represented.  But  the  reply  from  all  was,  that 
they  had  no  time  to  give  the  necessary  information.  So,  if 
my  information  from  there  should  prove  meager  and  incorrect, . 
I  must  lay  the  blame  at  their  door,  as  it  was  certainly  my 
desire  to  give  full  and  true  information. 

To  the  press  of  the  State  in  general,  and  especially  our 


PREFACE.  IX 

local  papers,  our  industry  owes  a  great  deal,  and  I  have  freely 
drawn  from  the  information  they  give.  They  have  always 
taken  a  lively  interest  in  viticulture,  and  published  all  the  in- 
formation they  could  gain,  giving  due  prominence  to  our 
calling,  and  I  take  this  opportunity  to  tender  them  our  grate- 
ful thanks. 

Hoping  that  they  and  my  readers  will  receive  this  volume 
with  their  usual  indulgence  and  kindness,  I  remain 
Their  fellow  laborer, 

George  Husmann. 
OAK  GLEN   VINEYARDS, 

CHILES  VALLEY,  NAPA  Co.,  CAL., 
October  20,  1887. 


CONTENTS. 

Part  I.— GRAPE  CULTURE. 


PAGE. 

CHAPTER      I.— A  glimpse  at  the  Past  and  Present 15 

II.—  Classification  of  Grapes 26 

III.— Propagation  of  the  Vine,  by  Seeds 31 

IV.— Propagation  by  Cuttings  in  Open  Air 35 

V. — Propagation,  by  Layers 88 

"  .VI.— The  Phylloxera  Question 42 

VII. — Resistant  Vines 67 

VIII.— Grafting  the  Vine 111 

IX. — The  Vineyard,  Location,  Aspect  and  Soil 128 

X.— Preparing  the  Soil 131 

XL— How  to  lay  out  and  Plant  a  Vineyard 133 

XII.— What  to  Plant.     Choice  of  Varieties 137 

XIII.— Cultivation  and  Treatment  during  the  First 

and  Second  Summers ]  65 

XIV.— Cultivation,  Pruning,  and  Training  the  Third 

and  Fourth  Years 172 

XV. — Diseases  of  Vines  and  Remedies 182 

XVI. — Insects  and  Animals  Injurious  to  the  Vine.. .  199 
XVII.— Frosts  and  Hail,  their  Effects,  Preventatives,    . 

and  Remedies-. 203 

"      v  X VIII.— The  Vintage,  Gathering  the  Grapes  for  Wine .  209 
XIX. — Picking  the  Grapes  for  Table  and   Market, 

The  Grape  Cure 214 

XX.— The  Vintage,  Raisin  Making 218 

XXI.— Individual  Enterprise 224 

vXXII. — Co-operation  in  Viticulture 244 

XXIII.- Women  in  the  Vineyard 247 

V  XXIV.: — Cost    of    Establishing   a   Vineyard,   and    its 

Probable  Returns . . .  . .  250 


fl 


CONTENTS. 

Part  II.— WINE  MAKING. 

C  II  A  P  T  E  R      I.— Making  Wine. 255 

"  II.— The  Cellar • 256 

III. — Wine-making  Apparatus 259 

IV.—  Making  Dry  Wines 265 

V.— D'Heurense's  Air  Treatment 290 

VI.— Air  Treatment  of  the  Young  Vine.     Rack- 
ing  310 

VII. — Clarification,  Filtering,  and  Fining 317 

"  VIII.— Ageing  Wines 321 

IX.— Diseases  of  Wines 324 

X.— Cutting  and  Blending 329 

XL— Bottling  Wine 332 

XII.— Concentrated  Must 336 

XIII.— Brandy  and  Vinegar 339 

XIV.— Wine  Storage  Houses.     The  "Pure  Wine" 

Bill 341 

^/XV.— Wine  Statistics 357 

v/XVI. — Wine  as  an  Article  of  Commerce 360 

"  XVII.— Wine  as  a  Temperance  Agent 364 

XVIII.— The  Future  of  the  Industry 371 

XIX. -Wine  Songs 375 


I. 


GRAPE  CULTURE  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  I. 

A  GLIMPSE  AT    THE  PAST  AND  PRESENT. 

It  cannot  be  expected,  in  a  book  which  pretends  to  be  no 
more  than  a  manual  for  the  grape  grower  and  wine  maker, 
that  I  should  give  a  history  of  the  industry  in  California. 
This,  although  no  doubt  it  would  be  a  pleasing  task  to  note 
dowrn  its  earliest  beginnings  and  do  honor  to  its  pioneers,  re- 
quires an  abler  pen.  than  mine,  one  imbued  with  all  the 
poetry  of  the  subject,  and  with  all  the  leisure  to  trace  up 
their  records,  than  can  be  brought  into  a  practical  outline  of 
operations;  which,  with  so  vast  a  subject  to  handle  makes  it 
difficult  already  to  confine  myself  to  such  limits  as  will  make 
the  book  concise  and  cheap  enough  for  every  grape  grower  in 
the  state.  But  a  short  outline  of  what  has  been  done  so  far, 
would  seem  necessary  and  proper,  to  show  what  we  may  ex- 
pect of  the  future,  and  may  well  be  expected  of  me. 

It  is  well  known  that  the  earliest  beginnings  were  made  by 
the  Jesuit  fathers  at  San  Gabriel,  with  what  has  since  become 
known  as  the  Mission,  or  as  it  is  erroneously  called  by  many, 
the  California  grape.  It  is  no  doubt  a  true  Vinifera;  whether, 
as  some  believe,  it  was  grown  from  the  seed  or  from  cuttings 
imported  from  Spain,  it  certainly  bears  no  resemblance  to  our 
native  wild  vine,  Vitis  Calif ornica.  A  few  enterprising  men  saw 
in  its  success  there  the  probabilities  of  a  valuable  industry. 
Their  experiments  were  rewarded  with  abundant  crops  which 
even  surpassed  their  expectations,  as  our  dry  and  equable 
summers  favored  the  development  of  the  grapes,  and  although 
it  was  thought  in  those  days  imperatively  necessary  to  irrigate 
the  vines,  they  found  that  the  Mission  always  ripened  its 
fruit,  would  produce  large  crops,  under  a  very  simple  and  con- 


lt>  GRAPE   CULTURE    AND 

venient  system  of  pruning,  and  make  a  fair  drinkable  wine  in 
most  seasons.  But  when  they  came  to  handle  the  product 
for  wine,  they  forgot  or  overlooked  that  our  long,  dry  sum- 
mers always  give  us  a  grape  rich  in  sugar,  and  that  every  fruit 
has  a  period  in  its  ripening  when  it  is  most  lively  and  most 
sprightly  to  the  taste.  In  Europe,  where  grapes  do  not  ripen 
so  fully,  it  becomes  necessary  to  let  them  hang  as  long  as 
possible,  to  bring  out  their  full  amount  of  sugar,  necessary  to 
make  a  fine  wine;  while  here  they  are  apt  to  become  over- 
ripe, and  as  it  needs  a  certain  amount  of  acids  to  develop  the 
full  bouquet  and  sprightliness  of  each  variety,  the  natural 
consequences  of  late  harvests  were  very  fiery,  heady  wines; 
either  with  a  great  deal  of  alcohol, or  very  often  badly  fermented, 
unpalatable  and  milksour.  They  wrere  not  wines  to  "make 
glad  the  heart  of  man,"  but  such  as  would  make  his  head 
swim  and  feel  uncomfortable.  These  were  placed  upon  the 
markets  as  California  hocks  and  clarets,  and  did  not,  as  may 
be  expected,  please  the  palates  of  those  who  were  accustomed 
to  the  finer  and  lighter  wines  of  France  and  Germany.  They 
pronounced  them  heady,  earthy,  and  in  many  cases  unfit  to 
drink.  The  natural  consequences  of  such  a  course  was,  that 
California  wines  fell  into  disrepute  and  could  not  find  buyers 
at  any  price;  grapes  could  not  be  sold  at  figures  to  pay  for  the 
gathering  and  working  of  the  vineyards,  and  hogs  were  turned 
in  to  fatten  on  their  products.  This  was  one  of  the  first  mis- 
takes committed;  owing  partly  to  an  inferior  variety  of  grapes, 
partly  to  faulty  management  of  the  crop;  and  retarded  for 
a  while  the  further  development  of  the  industry. 

But  still  the  incontrovertible  fact  remained,  that  some  fair 
wines  had  been  made,  that  the  vineyards  produced  regularly  a 
good  crop  of  healthy  grapes,  and  that  sweet  wines  could  be 
made,  even  of  the  Mission.  Grape  growing  had  started  in 
Southern  California,  and  on  irrigated  land,  but  it  had  gradu- 
ally spread  to  the  more  northern  parts.  Experiments  had 


TY 

WINE-MAKING    IN 


been  made  on  land  without  irrigation,  and  it  was  found  that 
the  vines,  though  of  a  slower  growth  and  bearing  less,  made 
a  more  delicate  and  higher  flavored  wine  than  on  irrigated 
ground.  Many  progressive  men,  encouraged  b)f  the  evident 
success  with  the  Mission  grape,  imported  cuttings  of  choice 
varieties  for  trial  from  France,  the  Rhine  and  Spain,  often 
at  heavy  expense  and  risk;  they  were  planted  in  different  sec- 
tions, and  mostly  found  to  succeed  well.  The  introduction 
of  the  Zinfandel  grape,  the  first  variety  from  which  a  creditable 
claret  was  made,  also  gave  a  new  impetus;  more  care  and 
skill  was  applied  in  handling  the  wines,  and  they  slowly  but 
surely  found  a  market  at  fairly  remunerative  prices.  Large 
wineries  were  built,  more  improved  machinery  applied,  and 
the  wine  makers  who  had  started  them,  and  could  sell  their 
wines  to  the  dealers  when  six  months  old,  at  a  fair  profit  on 
their  labor,  raised  the  price  of  grapes  until  grape  growing  be- 
came a  very  lucrative  business  again.  Farmers  found  that 
the  lands  they  had  cropped  with  cereals  until  they  were  ex- 
hausted, and  would  not  produce  grain,  would  still  yield  large 
crops  of  grapes,  for  which  they  had  a  ready  market  at  home. 
It  is  certainly  not  surprising  if  they  became  over  sanguine, 
until  everybody  and  his  neighbor  planted  grapes.  As  the 
Mission  was  known  to  be  productive,  and  they  could  sell  all 
they  could  grow,  a  good  many  vineyards  of  this  variety  were 
again  ^planted,  together  with  a  large  acreage  of  Zinfandel  and 
Malvasia.  The  vineyards  were,  to  a  large  extent,  planted  by 
men  who  had  little  appreciation  of  fine  quality,  but  planted 
grapes  simply  for  the  money  they  could  make  out  of  them. 
Rich  bottom  lands,  which  were  easily  cultivated  and  pro- 
duced heavy  crops,  were  naturally  preferred  to  the  less  rich 
hillsides,  with  more  laborious  cultivation  and  lighter  crops. 
The  common  system  of  stool  pruning,  so  convenient  and  easy, 
was  used  for  all  varieties  indiscriminately,  and  many  of  the 
choice  varieties,  such  as  the  Riesslings,  Pinots,  and  others, 


18  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

did  not  yield  under  this  treatment,  therefore  came  into  dis- 
repute as  poor  bearers,  while  with  a  little  more  care  in  stak- 
ing, tying,  and  pruning,  they  would  have  produced  well. 
Thus  the  heavy  bearers,  Mission,  Malvasia,  Burger,  and  Zin- 
fandel,  were  given  the  preference,  even  at  somewhat  lower 
prices  for  the  grapes,  and  the  planting  of  really  fine  varieties 
followed  by  comparatively  few. 

When  Chas.  A.  Wetmore,  our  past  Chief  Viticultural 
Officer,  made  a  trip  to  Europe,  and  especially  to  France,  to 
investigate  the  resources  and  methods  of  those  countries,  it 
was  but  natural  that  he  should  be  deeply  impressed  with  the 
magnitude  of  this,  the  leading  agricultural  interest  of  France, 
and  take  the  French  as  models  in  everything,  cultivation  of 
their  vineyards,  varieties  of  grapes  cultivated,  methods  of 
wine  making,  etc.,  especially  as  the  resemblance  of  climates 
is  great  in  many  respects.  But  he  lost  sight  of  the  great  dis- 
tance; of  our  rainless  summers,  our  wet  and  mild  winters, 
and  our  immense  diversity  of  soil  and  climate  even  in  the 
same  vineyard;  of  our  different  and  more  costly  labor  sys- 
tem, which  compels  us  to  look  for  the  cheapest  and  most 
simple  mode  of  culture,  compatible  with  thoroughness. 
While  I  do  not  wish  to  depreciate  the  great  results  obtained  by 
the  French  vineyardists  and  wine  makers,  from  which  we  can 
obtain  most  valuable  information,  yet  we  should  consider 
that  it  has  taken  them  centuries  to  study  the  methods  best 
adapted  to  their  wants  and  surroundings,  their  soil,  climate 
and  varieties,  and  that  we  cannot  hope  to  excel  here,  unless 
we  do  the  same,  and  adapt  our  methods  to  our  wants. 
Practical  knowledge,  gained  here  at  home,  even  of  a  few 
years,  will  be  a  safer  guide  to  us  than  to  blindly  follow  the 
practices  of  a  people  thousands  of  miles  distant,  and  who 
differ  just  as  widely  in  their  application  among  themselves  as 
we  do  here.  If  we  try  foreign  methods,  appliances  and  vari- 
eties, let  us  do  so  cautiously,  thinkingly,  and  with  due  regard 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  19 

to  the  differences  which  naturally  arise  from  all  accompany- 
ing circumstances.  I  do  not  think  that  any  one  will  question 
the  fact  that  serious  mistakes  have  already  been  made  by  fol- 
lowing French  methods  entirely  and  blindly,  and  especially 
in  supposing  that  California  wines,  in  their  infancy  and  imper- 
fect state  of  development,  could  already  compete  in  the  world's 
markets  with  the  average  of  French  and  German  brands,  with 
their  prestige  of  centuries,  their  intimate  knowledge  of  the  mar- 
kets and  their  requirements,  the  blends  that  will  produce  the 
most  harmonious  results,  composed  of  choice  varieties;  when 
we  had  only  the  product  of  a  few  inferior  varieties  to  offer  in 
quantities  to  cut  any  figure  in  the  markets,  while  our  really 
choice  samples  were  hardly  seen  or  known,  and  then  only 
to  very  few. 

It  was  a  serious  mistake  to  advise  the  unlimited  planting 
of  vineyards,  and  to  create  the  impression  that  this  State 
could  not  produce  enough  of  good,  cheap,  wholesome  clarets 
to  fill,  or  ever  glut  the  markets;  and  those  who  advised  such 
a  course  lost  sight  of  the  fact,  that,  before  we  can  count  our 
share  of  the  custom  of  the  world,  we  must  not  only  overcome 
the  prestige  of  other  nations,  but  also  the  prejudice  which  the 
inferiority  of  many  of  our  earlier  productions  have  created 
against  us.  The  vintage  of  1884,  with  its  abundant  and 
rather  inferior  product,  followed  by  a  panic  in  prices,  was  a 
lesson  by  which  we  should  profit,  as  it  should  have  taught  us 
what  we  may  expect.  Had  this  been  followed  by  an  equally 
abundant  and  similar  product  in  1884,  with  the  large  area  of 
additional  young  vineyards  which  came  into  bearing,  what 
else  could  we  expect  but  prices  so  low  that  they  would  hardly 
pay  the  producer  ?  This  was  averted  by  the  very  light  crop 
of  1885,  so  that  wines  came  up  to  fair  prices  again.  But 
after  the  crop  of  1886,  which  was  a  good  one  in  quality  as 
well  as  in  quantity,  perhaps  as  good  as  we  can  ever  expect, 
prices  have  dropped  again,  and  those  who  planted  vineyards 


20  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

with  the  idea  that  the  condition  of  the  five  preced- 
ing years  would  remain  the  same,  that  we  could  never 
produce  enough  of  good,  cheap  claret  to  meet  the  demand, 
and  have  in  consequence  of  it,  planted  mostly  Zinfandel, 
often  in  locations  not  at  all  suited  to  that  grape,  on  soil 
which  will  never  produce  it  in  perfection,  find  themselves 
confronted  by  low  prices  and  slow  sales.  While  it  makes  a 
really  fine  wine  in  choice  localities,  and  especially  on  our 
hillsides,  rich  in  iron  and  other  minerals  ;  I  have  still  to  see 
the  first  really  superior  claret  made  from  it  on  our  rich  bottom 
lands,  where  it  has  mostly  been  planted.  Besides,  it  needs 
skill  and  knowledge  in  gathering  and  fermenting  its  grapes,  to 
bring  out  all  its  best  qualities,  which  many  of  our  wine 
makers  do  not  possess,  and  the  time  is  coming  when  three- 
fourths  of  our  Zinfandel  and  Mataro  wines  have  to  be  sold  as 
inferior,  and  only  one-fourth  will  be  classed  as  strictly  fine 
wines,  and  sold  at  remunerative  prices. 

Another  mistake  was  made  in  discouraging,  or  at  least  not 
to  recommend,  the  planting  of  fine  white  wine  varieties, 
although  we  may  safely  claim  that  we  have  more  first-class 
white  wine  grapes  than  red.  We  can  produce  choicer  white 
wines  to-day,  to  suit  more  different  palates,  and  make  a 
greater  quantity  to  the  acre  than  of  red.  Yet  the  cry  has 
been:  "  Red  wines  are  the  universal  drink;"  therefore  plant 
them,  until  the  public  has  planted  generally  about  four-fifths 
of  red  to  one-fifth  of  white  wine  grapes.  We  see  the  effects 
of  this  already  in  the  higher  price  and  greater  scarcity  of 
white  grapes  and  wines,  which  bring  one-third  more  in  the 
market,  and  are  more  sought  after  than  the  red.  What  then 
will  it  be  in  the  future,  when  the  large  quantity  of  red  varie- 
ties planted  will  come  into  bearing?  I  grant  that  there  is  a 
larger  quantity  of  red  wine  consumed  in  the  world's  markets 
than  of  white,  but  not  in  the  proportion  already  mentioned; 
and  I  think  we  will  do  wise  to  plant  more  white  varieties  in 


WINK-MAKING   IN    CALIFORNIA.  21 

the  future,  and  perhaps  graft  some  of  our  young  and  old  red 
varieties  with  choice  white  ones.  We  cannot  deny  that  there 
is  a  large  part  of  the  wine  consuming  public  who  do,  and 
always  will,  prefer  the  more  delicate  white  wines  to  the  more  . 
astringent  red,  and  we  should  try  to  suit  their  palates,  especi- 
ally when  they  are  willing  to  pay  better  prices  for  them. 

Although  wine  making  is  a  very  simple  process  in  itself, 
yet  it  needs  great  discrimination  and  judgment,  as  the  product 
of  each  vintage  is  apt  to  be  different,  and  the  temperature  of 
each  season  is  also  a  very  important  factor  in  fermentation. 
It  was  evidently  judging  from  the  experience  of  the  vintage  of 
1884,  with  a  product  low  in  sacharine,  late  in  ripening  and  a 
cool  temperature,  that  Mr.  Wetmore  made  the  assertion, 
"that  any  one  could  ferment  his  grapes  and  make  his  wine  in 
an  old  shed,  and  turn  out  a  good  drinkable  wine,  without 
cellars  or  costly  fermenting  rooms."  The  prevailing  idea 
seemed  to  be,  that  the  quicker  fermentation  could  be  excited, 
the  better  would  be  the  wine,  even  if  this  had  to  be  accom- 
plished by  adding  brewers  yeast  or  flour.  The  season  of  1885 
came,  with  entirely  different  climatic  conditions,  a  different 
product,  an  early  vintage,  and  what  was  the  result?  Many, 
who  themselves- had  no  practical  insight  into  the  principles 
governing  fermentation  and  wine  making,  had  followed  this 
advice,  and  put  their  fermenting  tanks  out  in  the  hot  sun, 
with  no  other  covering  than  a  few  boards,  and  the  tempera- 
ture over  ioo  in  the  shade.  Fermentation  set  in  with  terrible 
violence  as  could  be  expected  the  grapes,  though  rich  in 
sugar,  were  sluggish  and  without  life  from  the  long  continued 
drought,  and  the  result  in  a  great  many  cases,  were  a  sudden- 
ly checked  fermentation  with  from  2  to  8  per  cent,  of  unfer- 
mented  sugar,  or  rather  caramel  in  the  wine.  Mr.  Wetmore 
was  applied  to,  to  help  them  out  of  this  difficulty,  and  certainly 
brought  a  good  deal  of  energy  and  good  will  to  this  herculean 
task.  Following  the  advice  of  French  wine  makers,  who*  are 


22  GRAPE   CULTURE  AND 

also  known  as  the  greatest  wine  doctors  in  the  world,  he  ad- 
vised in  rapid  succession,  brewers  yeast,  gypsum,  fresh  grapes, 
fresh  ferment  from  other  vats,  then  tartaric  acid  and  tannin. 
But  alas,  in  spite  of  all  these  remedies  and  their  application 
many  of  the  new  wines,  being  "  stuck  "  once,  refused  "to  go 
through  "  and  had  to  be  worked  into  sweet  wines,  or  distilled 
into  brandy.  If  our  wine  makers  have  gained  in  experience, 
it  has  been  a  bitter  and  costly  one,  although  some  of  their 
wines  remained  sweet,  and  as  wines  became  scarce,  and  the 
unfortunate  practice  still  prevailed  that  the  dealer  had  to 
buy  a  whole  cellar,  and  had  to  take  the  good  with  the  bad, 
these  imperfect  wines  were  doctored  up,  sent  to  the  East 
and  elsewhere  during  the  season  of  low  freights  in  1886,  and 
the  markets  flooded  with  indifferent  wines  by  unscrupulous 
persons,  which  again  damaged  the  reputation  of  California 
wines  seriously,  until  now,  their  purity,  on  which  we  have  al- 
ways justly  prided  ourselves,  is  called  into  question.  The 
outcome  of  this  was  the  enactment  of  the  "Pure  wine  bill"  as 
it  is  generally  termed,  by  our  legislature  last  winter,  which, 
although  perhaps  susceptible  of  improvement  and  amendment, 
will  at  least  show  to  the  world  at  large  that  we  understand 
wine  to  be  \hz  pure  unadulterated,  fermented  juice  of  the  grape, 
the  healthiest  and  best  drink  for  the  million.  And  what  in- 
ducement can  we  have  to  adulterate  it  ?  Surely  grape  juice 
pure  and  simple,  is  cheaper  in  our  blessed  climate,  than  any 
decoctions  or  sophistications  ;  and  we  need  nothing  else,  as 
soon  as  we  are  fully  informed  about  the  processes  of  making 
it.  To  assist  in  this,  is  the  principal  object  of  this  volume. 
Another  mistake  which  many  of  our  planters  have  commit- 
ted, is  the  persistence  with  which  they  have  planted,  and  are 
planting  even  now,  the  vinifera  cutting  and  vines,  in  districts 
affected  and  nearly  destroyed  by  the  Phylloxera.  They  ought 
to  profit  by  the  lessons  taught  in  France  and  all.  over  Europe, 
by  fhe  devastated  vineyards  which  have  reduced  the  crop  of 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  23 

France  to  about  one-third  of  what  it  was  formerly,  until  the 
greatest  grape  growing  nation  on  the  face  of  globe  cannot 
raise  sufficient  for  her  own  consumption,  and  has  to  buy  from 
all  her  neighbors  to  meet  the  demands  of  her  customers.  The 
devastations  already  made  in  our  own  vineyards  would  have 
convinced  the  most  skeptical,  that  they  ought  to  avail  them- 
selves of  the  only  efficacious  remedy,  the  planting  of  resistant 
vines,  the  cheapest,  simplest  and  best  preventative.  If,  instead, 
they  persist  in  planting  vinifera,  they  may  find  themselves  in  the 
near  future  with  wine  cellars  and  casks,  but  no  grapes  to  fill 
them.  But  perhaps  this  may  also  be  a  blessing  in  disguise,  as  it 
may  prevent  over  production,  and  take  off  a  great  many  of  the  old 
vineyards  of  inferior  varieties,  making  room  for  better  kinds. 
Another  great  error  and  a  crying  evil  at  the  same  time,  is 
the  high  price  at  which  wine  is  mostly  retailed  in  this  State. 
Is  it  fair  or  prudent  even,  that  wine  which  can  be  bought  by 
the  barrel  at  from  25  to  30  cents  per  gallon,  should  be  sold 
by  the  glass,  in  the  majority  of  our  saloons,  at  10  cents  per 
glass,  and  that  glass  be  so  small  that  it  will  take  from  60  to 
80  to  make  a  gallon  ?  How  can  we  ever  expect  to  see  wine 
what  it  ought  to  be,  the  daily  beverage  of  our  people,  en- 
livening and  strengthening  them,  and  making  them  truly  tem- 
perate, when"  it  is  retailed  at  such  enormous  profit,  the  re- 
tailer charging  6  to  8  dollars  per  gallon,  for  what  costs  him 
30  cents?  The  same  may  be  said  of  our  hotels  and  restau- 
rants; the  majority  not  even  keeping  California  wine  under 
its  own  honest  name,  but  selling  it  under  French  or  German 
labels  at  75c.  to  $r  per  bottle.  But  I  am  glad  to  say  that 
there  are  honorable  exceptions  to  the  rule,  and  that  some  of 
our  hotels  and  restaurants  already  serve  it  on  their  tables  in- 
stead of  tea  or  coffee,  if  the  guests  prefer  it.  I  know  of  one 
hotel  even,  and  that  what  is  called  a  "  second-class"  house, 
where  guests  are  served  with  a  good  and  plentiful  meal  at  25 
cents,  and  a  bottle  of  wine  is  served  with  each  two  plates  at 


24  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

dinner.  This  place  alone  uses  2000  gallons  of  light  wine  annu- 
ally; yet  our  so  called  first-class  hotels,  who  charge  their 
guests  $3  per  day,  pretend  that  they  cannot  afford  it.  But 
the  remedy  is  very  simple.  Let  us  leave  such  houses  severely 
alone,  and  patronize  only  those  who  are  willing  to  do  the  fair 
thing  towards  us,  or  buy  wine  by  the  gallon  from  the  producer^ 
keep  it  at  our  homes,  and  enjoy  it  with  our  families. 

I  have  so  far  reviewed  only  the  wine  interest  as  the  leading 
and  most  prominent  one.  But  it  is  far  from  being  the  only 
branch  of  grape  culture  followed.  Our  raisin  industry  has 
also  assumed  large  proportions,  and  though  it  lagged  and  suf- 
fered under  similar  disadvantages  as  the  wine  industry,  being 
also  a  new  and  untried  business,  with  which  those  who  en- 
tered into  it  were  mostly  unacquainted,  yet  it  seems  to  have 
passed  its  worst  period  of  supression  in  prices.  The  growers 
have  learned  better  methods  of  curing,  use  more  care  and 
skill  in  packing,  select  their  fruit  and  grade  it  better,  so  that 
many  brands  of  California  raisins  already  rank  with  the  best 
imported  goods  and  bring  the  same  price.  Our  dry  falls 
greatly  favor  this  business,  which  bids  fair  to  assume  gigantic 
proportions,  and  to  offer  a  pleasing  and  wholesome  occupa- 
tion for  women  and  children,  certainly  more  wholesome  and 
pleasant  than  the  work  in  crowded  factories. 

The  growing  of  grapes  for  table  and  market  is  also  receiv- 
ing a  new  impetus  through  cheaper  Eastern  freights  and  bet- 
ter methods  of  packing,  quicker  transportation,  and  improved 
shipping  facilities.  There  seems  to  me  nothing  to  prevent, 
that  California  fresh  grapes  should  be  in  the  market  from 
August  to  February,  and  even  ]ater.  Our  earliest  locations, 
at  Vacaville  and  Pleasant  Valley  can  furnish  ripe  grapes  in 
August,  while  the  Santa  Cruz  mountains  furnished  them 
fresh  from  open  vineyard,  without  the  slightest  touch  of  frost, 
last  winter,  in  January;  they  can  go  through  to  New  York  in 
six  days,  and  at  moderate  charges  for  freight,  where  Eastern 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  25 

freights  and  time  of  transit  formerly  were  almost  prohibitory. 
In  summing  up  the  past  and  looking  at  the  present,  what 
do  we  find  ?  A  great  industry,  which  forty  years  ago  was 
hardly  thought  of;  an  untried  field,  over  which  we  have 
worked  and  experimented  with  bright  hopes,  alternated  with 
discouraging  reverses,  but  which  has  already  brought  forth  re- 
sults of  which  we  may  feel  justly  proud,  and  which  ought  to 
encourage  us  to  renewed  exertions  in  the  future,  We  have 
already  produced  wines  which  can  safely  compete  with  the 
best  foreign  importations,  and  have  the  great  advantage  of 
being  sold  at  less  than  half  the  price.  I  speak  knowingly,  for 
I  have  had  frequent  opportunities  of  testing  the  best  importa- 
tions, even  including  the  finest  Johannisberg,  Forster 
Traminer,  Chateau  Yquem,  and  Clos  Vougeot;  and  with  only 
four  exceptions  h^rve  tasted  as  good  and  better  wine  in  Cali- 
fornia. We  can  produce  a  good,  sound  wine  every  season,  and 
will  have  a  great  improvement  in  its  general  quality  in  the  near 
future.  That  manifold  mistakes  were  made  and  errors  com- 
mitted was  but  natural;  and  I  have  enumerated  some  of  them 
not  actuated  by  a  spirit  of  fault  finding,  but  by  the  conviction 
that  we  must  know  our  shortcomings  to  enable  us  to  do 
better  in  the  future.  We  can  make  all  kinds  of  wines,  from 
the  light,  pleasant  wines  of  France  and  Germany  to  the 
heavy  and  fiery  ports  and  sherries  of  Spain  and  Portugal,  and 
they  have  already  been  introduced  in  England,  Germany, 
Holland  and  Belgium,  the  Sandwich  Islands,  even  Japan  and 
China,  Mexico  and  all  the  States  and  Territories.  If  they 
have  not  always  given  satisfaction,  they  can  be  made,  and 
will  be  made  to  do  so  as  soon  as  could  possibly  be  expected. 
The  State  has  fostered  and  encouraged  the  industry,  by 
creating  and  endowing  the  State  Board  of  Viticulture;  it  is 
well  represented  at  our  State  University,  and  thousands  of 
industrious  and  thinking  people  have  chosen  it  as  their  occu- 
pation. We  can  boast  already  of  the  largest  vineyards  and 


26  GRAPE  CULTURE    AND 

wineries  in  the  world.  We  have  the  finest  and  most  uniform 
climate,  the  most  diversified  soil  and  aspects.  Nature  has 
designed  this  to  be  the  great  Vineland,  the  France  of  the  new 
Continent,  where  every  one  can  "  sit  under  his  own  vine  and 
fig  tree."  Be  ours  the  happy  task  to  work  out  this  problem, 
and  prove  worthy  of  it,  profiting  by  the  errors  of  the  past, 
with  hopes  that  never  flag,  of  its  happy  ultimate  accom- 
plishment. 


CHAPTER  II. 

CLASSIFICATION  OF  GRAPES. 

I  shall  not  attempt  elaborate  descriptions  of  all  the  species 
now  found  by  botanists,  as  they  would  be  of  little  practical 
use  to  the  vineyardist.  Suffice  it  to  say,  that  the  late  Dr. 
George  Engelmann,  one  of  the  keenest  observers  of  nature, 
found  a  striking  distinction  in  the  seeds,  and  classified  them 
into  fourteen  species,  in  the  following  order:  i.  Labrusca 
or  Northern  Fox.  2.  Candicans  or  Mustangensis.  3. 
Carribbea  or  Caloosa.  4.  Californica.  5.  Monticola  or 
Mountain  Grape.  6.  Arizonica.  7.  ^stivalis  or  Summer 
Grape.  8.  Cinerea  or  Ashy  Winter  Grape.  9.  Cordifolia 
or  Winter  Grape.  10.  Palmata  or  Rubra.  n.  Riparia 
or  River  Grape.  12.  •  Rup^stris,  Sugar  or  Bush  Grape. 
13.  Vinifera  or  European  Grape.  14.  Rotundifolia,  Vul- 
pina  or  Southern  Fox.  The  accompanying  cut  will  illustrate 
the  form  of  seeds  and  natural  size  of  them. 


FIG  1. 

SEEDS  OF  CERTAIN  AMERICAN  AND  EUROPEAN  VINES. 


I. — V.  ^Estivalis, 
2.— V.  Cordifolia, 
3. — V.  Candicans, 
4. — V.  Cinerea, 
7. — V.  Biparia, 
8.— V.  Kupestris, 
9. — V.  Labrusca, 


10.— Isabella, 
11.— Taylor, 
12.— Clinton, 
13. — Delaware, 
14.— V.  Vinifera, 
15. — Chasselas, 
16. — Cabernet, 


17. — Jacquez, 
18. — Herbemont, 
j  9. — Eulander, 
20  — Eumelan, 
21.— York-Madeira, 
22. — Scuppernong, 
23.— V.  Solonis. 


28  GRAPE   CULTURE   AND 

Mr.  T.  V.  Munson,  of  Denison,  Texas,  has  lately  made 
another  classification  according  to  geographical  distribution 
of  the  native  American  species.  He  classes  them  in  seven 
groups,  as  follows: 

1.  Riparian  Group,   a,   Riparia,   b,   Rupestris,   c,  Nuovo 
Mexicana,  d,  Arizonica. 

2.  Cordifolian  Group,  a,  Cordifolia,  b,  Palmate. 

3.  Cinerean  Group,  a,  Cinerea,  b,  Monticola. 

4.  /Estivalian  Group,  a,  Northern  form,   b,  Southeastern 
form,  c,  Southwestern  form. 

5.  Vulpina  Group,  a,   Labrusca,   b,   Carribbea,  c,  Candi- 
cans. 

6.  Meaty  fruited,  soft  rooted  group,  a,  California,   b,  Vini- 
fera. 

7.  Rotundifolia  or  Southern  Fox. 

Of  these,  we  are  only  more  immediately  interested  in  the 
following,  which  have  either  been  introduced  into  this  State 
or  found  wild;  these  are,  i,  Labrusca,  2,  Riparia,  3,  ^s- 
tivalis,  4,  Rupestris,  5,  Arizonica,  6,  Californica,  7,  Vinifera. 

The  first  six  are  chiefly  valuable  as  stocks  to  graft  upon, 
though  some  of  the  varieties  may  prove  valuable  for  their 
fruit;  while  from  the  last  come  all  our  leading  grapes  for  wine, 
raisins  and  table  now  cultivated  in  this  State. 

i.  Labrusca,  or  Northern  Fox,  is  found  wild  east  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains,  mostly  on  the  Atlantic  shore,  from  Can- 
ada to  the  Gulf,  generally  in  moist  woods  or  thickets.  Leaves, 
large  and  thick,  sometimes  entire  heart  shaped,  sometimes 
lobed,  dark  green  above,  covered  with  whitish  or  rusty  wool 
on  the  under  side;  berries,  rather  large,  purple  or  dark  amber, 
with  tough  pulp  and  foxy  or  musky  odor.  The  Catawba 
and  Isabella,  also  the  Concord,  are  the  most  generally  known 
cultivated  varieties  of  this  class,  and  are  occasionally  grown 
for  market  in  this  State.  Its  roots  are  tough  and  wiry,  and 
have  a  tendency  to  run  along  the  surface,  which  hardly  fits 


WINK-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  29 

the  class  for  our  dry  soils  and  summers.     Only  partly  resis- 
tant to  phylloxera,  although  more  so  than  Vinifera. 

2.  Riparia,  Riverside  Grape.     In  its  wild  state  we  distin- 
guish   two    distinct    forms,    the    smooth   leaved,  and  downy 
leaved  or  pubescent.      Its  homes  are  the  bottoms  of  larger 
streams,  especially  of  Missouri,  Illinois,  Kansas  and  Nebraska, 
where   the   smooth  leaved   form  is  most   common,  while  the 
downy  leaved  appears  mostly  in  Texas  and  New  Mexico. 
Both   are   equally  valuable   as  grafting  stocks.      Wood,  thin 
and  long,  long  jointed;  the   leaves   heart  shaped,  with  acute 
points,  deeply  serrated  and  sometimes  lobed;  in  the   smooth 
variety  light  green  above  and  below,    without   down  ;  in  the 
pubescent,,  wooly  below,   and  the  stems  covered  with  light 
hair.      Berry,  small,  black,  without  pulp,  and  sprightly,  dark 
colored  juice.      Roots,  thin  and  wiry,  hard,  spreading;  seems 
to   succeed  in  nearly  all  soils;   propogates  readily  from   cut- 
tings.     The    wild    vines   are    entirely  resistant.     The    most 
known  cultivated   varieties  are  Clinton,   Elvira,  Taylor  and 
others,  some  of  them  evidently  hybrids  of  Labrusca  and  Rip- 
aria. 

3.  sEstivalis  or  Summer  Grape.     Vine  a  strong  grower, 
healthy  and  hardy,  but  difficult  to   propogate  from  cuttings. 
Leaves,  large,. thick,  downy  beneath,  generally  lobed,  though 
some  varieties  are   not.      Found   mostly  on   uplands,  and  is 
eminently  fitted  to  withstand  drought,  as  it  has  strong,  very 
hard  roots,  which  strike  deep  into  the  soil.      A  fine  stock  for 
grafting  the  Vinifera,   as  they  take  readily.      Berries,  small, 
black  with  blue  bloom,  not  pulpy,   and  some  of  fine  quality 
for  wine.     The  Herbemont,  Lenoir,  Rulander  and  Cunning- 
ham are  the  most  prominent  cultivated  varieties. 

4.  Rttpeslris.      Bush    or  sugar  grape,  Southwest  Missouri, 
Arkansas  and  Texas.     Vine  bushy,  with  many  small  branches, 
stocky;    leaves    small    and  shining   above  and    below,  heart 
shaped;    berry    small,    black,    with   blue    bloom,  propagates 


30  GRAPE  CULTURE    AND 

readily  from  cuttings;  vine  makes  a  good  grafting  stock,  but 
is  apt  to  sucker;  roots  thin  and  wiry,  resistant. 

5.  Arizonica.       Arizona   and    New    Mexico.       Resembles 
Rupestris  very    much,  but  is  a  more   upright  grower.      Does 
not  seem  to  take  the  graft  readily,  and  has   not  so  far  full- 
filled  the  expectations  of  its  disseminators. 

6.  Californica.     Generally  found  wild  along  all  the  streams 
of  this  State,  where  it  often  attains  very  large  size.     Wood 
grayish,  long   jointed,   a    strong   grower,   with    thick,   fleshy, 
soft  roots,  which  go  straight  down.       Leaves  heart  shaped, 
downy  and  wooly;  berry  small,  black,  without  pulp,  but  very 
large  seeds.     It  takes  the  graft  readily,  and,  should  it  prove 
entirely  resistant,  which  is  not   fully  proven  yet,  will  make  a 
valuable    stock    on   deep,    moist    soils,    while    not    so    well 
adapted  to  dry  hillsides. 

7.  Vitiifera.     To  this  class  belong  all  of  our  leading  varie- 
ties.    It  is  the  old    European    or  Asiatic  grape.     Too  well 
known  here  to  need  any  more  minute  description. 

This  much  seemed  to  be  necessary  to  give  the  reader  a 
clear  understanding  and  avoid  repitition  and  minute  descrip- 
tion. Those  who  wish  to  investigate  this  subject  further  will 
find  the  essay  by  Mr.  T.  V.  Munson,  on 'Native  Grapes  of 
the  United  States,  read  before  the  American  Horticultural 
Society,  very  interesting,  which  can  be  obtained  from  the  Sec- 
retary, Prof.  H.  VV.  Ragan. 


WINE-MAKINC    IN     CALIFORNIA.  31 


CHAPTER    III. 

PROPAGATION    OF    THE    VINE. 

i.   By  Seeds. 

This  may  be  divided  into  two  separate  parts,  according  to 
the  object  the  propagator  has  in  view,  namely: 

i.     To  raise  new  and  improved  varieties. 

While  the  raising  of  vines  from  seed  with  this  object  in 
view  is  more  a  labor  of  love  than  of  actual  profit,  its  influ- 
ence on  grape  culture  has  been  so  great,  and  we  are  already 
so  largely  indebted  to  its  zealous  followers,  that  it  can  not  be 
entirely  omitted  here.  All  our  fine  varieties  are  either  acci- 
dental or  carefully  hybridized  crossed  seedlings;  and  there 
would  be  no  improvement  in  varieties  without  this.  The  im- 
mense progress  in  American  varieties  within  the  last  forty 
years,  when  only  half  a  dozen  varieties  were  known,  of  which 
the  Catawba  and  Isabella  may  be  considered  as  fair  samples, 
are  due  to  the  labors  of  such  men  as  Rogers,  Wylie,  Camp- 
bell, Ricketts,  Miller,  Rommel  and  Munson,  who  have  orig- 
inated varities  for  their  climate  and  purposes  more  valuable 
than  our  Viniferas  would  be,  and  it  certainly  required  a  long 
line  of  improved  seedlings  to  make  up  the  long  list  of  excel- 
lent varities  of  Vinifera  we  now  cultivate  here  and  in  Europe. 

To  begin  then  at  the  beginning;  choose  your  seed  from  a 
good  stock.  Take  a  good  variety  which  you  would  like  to 
improve  in  a  certain  quality,  be  it  size  or  form  of  berry  or 
bunch,  fruitfulness,  time  of  ripening,  or  flavor.  If  a  vine 
stands  next  to  the  one  you  take  the  seeds  from,  which  has 
the  desired  quality,  and  which  may  have  impregnated  the 
bloom,  so  much  the  better,  your  chances  are  so  much  more. 


32  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

Choose  the  finest  bunch,  the  most  perfect  berries,  and  either 
take  the  seeds  from  them  fresh,  or  keep  them  over  winter 
in  their  pulp  or,  if  cleaned,  keep  them  in  sand  in  winter  until 
they  can  be  sown  in  early  spring.  They  will  not  germinate 
so  readily  if  allowed  to  become  dry.  Make  a  bed  of  finely 
pulverized  soil,  the  deeper  the  better;  sow  in  drills  about  one 
foot  apart,  and  the  seeds  about  an  inch  apart  in  the  rows, 
covering  about  an  inch  deep  with  finely  pulverized  soil,  press- 
ing it  lightly  to  the  seeds,  either  with  your  foot  or  the  back  of 
the  hoe.  When  the  young  plants  appear,  which  will  gener- 
ally be  within  six  weeks,  keep  them  clean  and  well  cultivated 
through  the  summer;  in  the  fall,  take  them  up  carefully  so  as 
not  to  mutilate  their  roots,  and  heel  them  in  well-drained, 
fine  soil;  covering  up  nearly  to  the  top  to  keep  them  during 
the  winter  and  preserve  their  roots  in  the  best  condition.  It 
will  be  well,  during  the  summer,  to  look  over  them  frequently, 
and  if  any  of  them  show  signs  of  disease  in  leaf  or  growth, 
or  are  puny  or  sickly,  pull  them  up,  as  they  will  not  be 
worth  keeping.  It  may  also  be  well  to  shade  the  young 
plants  for  the  first  month  or  so,  to  prevent  the  sun  from 
scalding  them  while  yet  tender;  and  if  any  of  them  grow 
very  strong,  give  them  small  sticks  for  support.  In  the  fol- 
lowing spring  they  may  be  transplanted  to  their  permanent 
location  in  vineyard  or  garden.  The  ground  should  be  mod- 
erately light  and  rich,  and  loosened,  if  at  all  tenacious,  to  the 
depth  of  eighteen  inches. 

Make  a  slanting  hole  with  the  spade  about  a  foot  deep, 
then  shorten  the  young  growth  on  the  vine  to  about  six  inches 
above  the  collar,  (the  part  of  the  vine  where  the  growth  from 
the  root  begins).  Then  spread  the  side  fibres  well,  letting 
the  top  or  leading  root  go  down  to  the  bottom  of  the  hole, 
and  set  the  vine  about  an  inch  deeper  than  it  stood  in  the 
nursery.  Fill  up  with  well  pulverized  soil,  pressing  it  lightly 
with  the  foot.  They  may  be  planted  the  usual  distance 


WINK-MAKING   IN    CALIFORNIA.  33 

apart  in  the  vineyard,  and  when  the  young  growth  appears, 
leave  but  one  or  two  of  the  stockiest  and  strongest  shoots. 
Allow  all  the  laterals  to  grow  on  these,  as  this  will  make 
thera  short  jointed  and  stocky,  Cultivate  well  and  frequent- 
ly, keeping  the  soil  loose  and  mellow. 

This  second  season  the  young  seedlings  ought  to  make  a 
growth  of  a  few  feet  of  short  jointed  wood.  This  should  be 
cut  down  to  three  or  four  buds  the  next  spring.  These,  if 
the  growth  is  strong  enough  to  develop  fruit  buds,  will  gener- 
ally show  fruit,  or  if  any  of  them  look  very  promising  in  leaf 
or  growth,  fruit  may  be  obtained  sooner  by  grafting  the  wood 
on  stronger  vines.  The  first  fruit  is  generally  imperfect,  and 
will  increase  in  size  of  bunch  and  berry  for  several  years. 
If  the  quality  is  good,  and  they  show  a  fair  degree  of  fruitful- 
ness,  they  may  be  considered  promising,  although  it  will  gen- 
erally take  several  seasons  to  develop  them  fully. 

Quite  a  number  will  prove  barren,  or  not  of  desirable 
quality.  These  can  be  grafted  afterwards  with  the  most 
promising  or  some  good  old  variety;  therefore  there  is  really 
but  little  loss,  while  a  lot  of  seedlings  are  always  a  very  inter- 
esting study,  which  may  be  very  valuable  in  its  results. 

2.     To  raise  seedlings  as  stocks  for  grafting. 

Here  we  have  an  entirely  different  object  in  view,  and  our 
aim  is  simply  to  raise  the  most  uniformly  healthy  plants,  of 
the  strongest  and  most  even  growth.  The  wild  species  of  our 
Tines  are  more  apt  to  produce  'these  than  the  cultivated  varie- 
ties; therefore  the  seeds  of  them  are  preferred.  Whether 
these  had  better  be  Riparia,  California,  or  ^stivalis,  we  will 
consider  in  the  chapter  on  "  Resistant  Vines/' 

A  pound  of  seed  of  these  wild  species  will  generally  pro- 
duce, if  good  and  fresh,  from  2,000  to  3,000  plants,  and  as 
it  can  now  be  had  cheap  from  reliable  men,  who  make  it 
.their  business  to  gather  it  in  its  native  region,  it  affords  a  very 
cheap  and  convenient  way  to  raise  good  stocks,  as  the  price 


34  GRAPE   CULTURE    AND 

is  but  from  one  to  two  dollars  per  pound.  Prepare  a  piece  of 
good  soil  thoroughly,  deeply  plowing  and  cultivating  it,  level- 
ing off  well  with  harrow  and  clod  crusher.  It  will  be  more 
economical  to  work  these  with  a  horse  cultivator  during  the 
summer;  therefore  the  drills  can  be  made  three  feet  apart. 
The  seed,  which  generally  is  dry  when  received,  even  if 
gathered  the  foregoing  fall,  should  be  prepared  about  a  week 
before  sowing,  by  soaking  in  hot,  but  not  boiling,  water,  in 
which  it  may  remain  for  twelve  hours,  when  the  cold  water 
may  be  poured  off,  and  another  application  of  hot  water 
given.  The  next  day  pour  it  into  a  sack  to  drain  off  the 
water,  and  lay  it  in  the  sun  during  the  day,  moistening  the 
sack  whenever  it  becomes  dry,  and  keeping  it  under  cover  at 
night.  The  best  time  for  sowing  in  this  State  is  in  February 
or  March;  in  frosty  locations  it  may  be  well  to  wait  a  little 
later.  It  generally  takes  about  three  weeks  to  a  month  be- 
fore the  young  plants  appear,  and  all  danger  of  frost  should 
be  passed  then. 

Sow  in  shallow,  broad  drills,  so  that  the  seeds  are  at  least 
an  inch  apart,  if  you  wish  to  raise  good  stocky  plants;  cover 
about  an  inch  deep,  with  fine  soil,  pressing  the  ground  to  the 
seeds.  The  young  plants  should  be  kept  clean  and  well  cul- 
tivated, a  shovel  cultivator  to  "straddle  the  rows,"  so  that  one 
share  goes  on  each  side  of  the  row,  and  run  through  them 
every  week  or  ten  days,  will  keep  the  soil  loose  and  mellow, 
although  they  should  also  be  hoed  once  or  twice.  In  the 
fall  or  early  in  winter,  when  the  rains  have  softened  the 
ground,  they  can  be  dug  by  running  a  tree  or  grape  vine  dig- 
ger as  the  nurserymen  use  them,  under  the  rows  and  pulling 
up  the  young  vines  by  hand;  or  if  such  a  tool  is  not  to  be 
had,  a  furrow  plowed  away  from  them  on  each  side,  and  lift- 
ing them  with  the  spade.  I  sort  and  grade  them  generally  in 
two  classes,  as  it  will  make  a  more  even  plantation,  tie  them 
in  bundles  of  100  each,  and  "heel. them  in,"  in  beds  slightly 


WINE-MAKING    IN   CALIFORNIA.  35 

raised  above  the  surface,  when  they  are  ready  for  planting  in 
vineyard,  treating  them  as  described  before.  In  one  or  two 
years,  they  are  ready  for  grafting,  and  generally  make  very 
fine  and  even  stocks,  as  they  can  be  transplanted  with  nearly 
their  entire  roots  and  therefore  receive  very  little  check. 
While  planting,  however,  the  roots  should  be  kept  in  a  pail  of 
water,  to  keep  them  moist  and  fresh. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

PROPAGATION    BY    CUTTINGS    IN    OPEN     AIR. 

I  am  aware  that  a  great  majority  of  California  vineyards  are 
planted  with  cuttings  planted  directly  in  the  vineyard.  While 
this  makes  very  good  vineyards  sometimes,  if  the  circum- 
stances are  favorable,  yet  I  do  not  recommend  it,  and  think 
it  the  cause  of  the  great  number  of  uneven  stands  we  see  in 
the  State.  Moreover,  all  varieties  do  not  root  equally  well, 
and  it  is  always  safer  to  plant  in  nursery,  and  remove  the  plants 
into  vineyard  next  spring. 

Most  of  the  Vinifera  varieties  root  readily  from  cuttings, 
but  as  I  do  not  advise  planting  this,  on  account  of  the  danger 
from  phylloxera  ,and  as  nearly  all  American  species  do  not 
root  quite  so  readily,  it  is  all  the  more  prudent  to  plant  in 
nursery  first. 

Of  the  American  species,  the  varieties  I  would  chiefly 
recommend  for  stocks,  are  the  wild  Riparia  and  the  /Estiva- 
lis,  for  reasons  which  will  be  given  in  the  chapter  on  "Re- 
sistant Vines."  The  wild  Riparia  roots  readily,  while  of  the 


36  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

-/Estivalis  class  only  the  Rulander  and  the  Cunningham  root 
well,  the  Herbemont  and  Lenoir  will  turn  out  about  50  per 
cent,  and  the  Nortons  Virginia  and  Cynthiana  hardly  any. 

The  cuttings  can  be  made  any  time  after  the  leaves  have 
dropped  until  the  buds  begin  to  swell,  it  is  best,  however,  to 
make  them  in  the  first  part  of  winter,  when  they  can  be 
heeled  in  bundles,  to  keep  until  planted.  Neither  the  very 
large  and  pithy,  nor  the  very  small  wood  near  the  ends  should 
be  selected,  but  rather  the  medium  sized,  short-jointed  wood,. 
which  will  not  only  be  more  sure  to  root,  but  also  make  a 
firmer  and  better  plant.  Nor  is  it  advisable  to  make  the  cut- 
tings 1 8  inches  or  even  two  feet  long,  as  has  been  the  prac- 
tice in  this  State,  very  likely  derived  from  the  old  European 
vintners,  who  follow  that  practice  for  no  other  reason  than 
because  their  father  and  grandfather  did  so  before  them. 
Forty  years  of  nursery  practice,  commencing  with  18  inch 
cuttings,  and  ending  with  9  to  10  inches,  has  taught  me  that 
the  longer  the  cutting,  the  more  feeble  and  small  will  be  the 
roots  they  make  ;  small  puny  fibres,  distributed  over  the 
whole  length,  instead  of  the  strong,  well  developed  root  sys- 
tem at  the  base  of  the  shorter  cutting.  If  the  lower  end  of 
the  cutting  or  plant  is  buried  in  the  cold  hard  soil,  below  the 
influence  of  sun  and  air,  so  necessary  to  all  plant  life,  how 
can  we  expect  it  to  make  strong,  healthy  roots  ?  Here  in 
California  it  may  be  well  not  to  go  into  extremes,  but  a  cut- 
ting of  12  inches,  from  the  lower  bud  to  the  upper,  is  long 
enough,  and  will  make  a  better  vine  than  18  inches.  That 
the  wood  should  be  well  ripened  and  sound,  is,  of  course,  the 
first  consideration. 

The  vines  may  be  pruned  in  fair  weather,  and  the  clippings 
taken  in  to  be  worked  up  during  rainy  days,  but  it  should 
never  be  allowed  to  get  dry,  as  that  destroys  its  vitality.  Cut 
close  below  the  lower  bud,  making  the  cut  somewhat  slanting,  a* 
the  accompanying  illustration  will  show,  leaving  about  an  inch 


WINE-MAKING    IN   CALIFORNIA. 


of  wood  above  the  upper  bud 
or  eye.  If  a  small  piece  of 
the  old  wood,  or  the  whorl  of 
buds,  where  it  starts  from  the 
old  wood,  can  be  left  so  much 
the  better,  such  cuttings  are 
almost  sure  to  grow.  They 
are  then  tied  in  bundles  of 
250  each,  the  lower  ends 
made  even.  I  use  leather 
straps  and  buckles  to  draw 


FIG  2. 


A,   ordinary  cutting ;  B,    cutting  with 
old  wood  (mallet  cutting) ;   C,    cutting 
them    together    and    then   tie  with  longitudinal  sections  of  old  wood. 

firmly  with  annealed  wire  No.  16.  This  is  a  much  better  tie 
than  twine  or  bale  rope,  as  it  will  not  rot,  and  is  much  cheap- 
er besides.  The  bundles  are  then  "heeled  in"  or  buried  in 
the  ground,  in  trenches  made  for  that  purpose  ;  inverted,  that 
is  placed  on  their  tops,  and  the  butts  well  covered  with  3  to 
6  inches  of  soil.  Inverting  them  has  the  object  to  place  the 
lower  end  of  the  cutting,  which  is  to  form  the  callus  or  roots, 
closer  to  warmth  and  air  than  the  top  buds.  It  will  thus  cal- 
lus first,  while  the  top  buds  remain  dormant,  and  is  ready  to 
throw  out  rootlets  as  soon  as  planted,  while  with  the  tops 
above,  they"  often  start  to  grow  before  there  is  anything  to 
support  them,  and  then  wilt  down  afterwards. 

In  the  spring  I  wait  until  the  ground  is  warm  enough,  gen- 
erally until  April  in  Northern  California.  Select  a  piece  of 
good,  deep  soil  for  the  Nursery,  which  should  be  made  mellow 
and  friable  by  repeated  deep  plowing,  if  not  naturally  so. 
Then  throw  out  slanting  trenches  with  the  plow,  deepening 
them  with  the  spade  if  necessary,  three  or  four  feet  apart. 
Put  in  the  cutting  as  close  as  convenient,  say  two  inches 
apart  in  the  row,  slanting  them  enough  so  that  the  lower  end 
is  9  inches  below  the  surface,  while  the  upper  bud  is  about 


38  GRAPE  CULTUKE    AND 

even  with  it.  Draw  in  fine  soil  with  the  hoe,  and  firm  it 
well  around  the  base  of  the  cutting,  as  it  is  important  that  it 
should  be  closely  packed  around  it,  filling  up  to  the  top  of 
the  cuttings,  and  if  some  fine  soil  is  drawn  over  it,  it  is  all 
the  better  for  this  mulch.  Keep  clean  with  hoe  and  cultiva- 
tor, and  the  soil  stirred  frequently  during  the  summer,  to 
keep  it  mellow  and  moist.  I  have  found  this  much  better 
than  irrigating,  which  makes  the  ground  cold  and  hard,  dur- 
ing a  time  when  the  young  plant  needs  warmth  as  well  as 
moisture.  If  the  ground  is  well  stirred,  it  will  never  dry  out 
deep  enough  to  injure  the  roots.  The  plants  can  then  be 
taken  up  in  fall  or  early  winter,  and  handled  and  planted 
similar  to  seedlings.  If  for  particular  reasons,  it  should  be- 
come necessary  to  plant  cuttings  immediately  in  the  vineyard, 
I  would  advise  to  plant  two,  instead  of  one,  making  a  hole 
with  a  spade,  and  getting  the  base  of  the  cuttings  about  six 
inches  apart,  so  that,  if  both  should  grow,  one  can  be  re- 
moved and  planted  elsewhere.  In  this  manner,  we  can  avoid 
vacancies,  as  either  one  or  the  other  will  usually  grow. 


CHAPTER  V. 
PROPAGATION    BY  LAYERS. 

This  is  but  little  practiced  in  California,  owing  to  the 
facility  by  which  all  the  Vinifera  species  can  be  propagated 
by  cuttings.  It  is,  however,  valuable  in  propagating  such 
varieties  as  have  very  hard  wood  and  will  not  root  readily 
from  cuttings,  especially  of  the  /Kstivalis  class;  and  for 
filling  vacancies  in  old  vineyards.  I  will  first  describe  the 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


process  which  we  call  surface  layering,  for  the  purpose  of 
raising  a  large  number  of  young  plants  from  hard  wood 
varieties. 

Choose  a  young  cane  of  last  seasons  growth,  starting  as  near 
to  the  base  of  the  vine  as  possible.  It  will  be  well,  the  sum- 
mer before,  to  leave  some  of  the  lowest  shoots  for  that  pur- 
pose, growing  them  as  long  as  possible.  This  cane  is  pruned 
as  long  as  it  has  well  developed,  sound  buds;  the  ground 
made  mellow  below  the  vine,  and  a  shallow  trench,  say  two 
inches  deep  is  drawn  with  the  hoe  as  long  as  the  cane.  This 
is  then  bent  down  into  the  trench,  and  fastened  on  the  bottom 
with  small  pegs  or  wooden  hooks.  (Fig.  3.)  Each  bud  on  the 


FIG.  3. 

cane  will  generally  produce  a  shoot,  which  will  grow  upwards,  or 
should  be  made  to  do  so,  when  the  trench  is  filled  up  around 
the  shoots,  which  is  done  when  they  are  about  a  foot  high. 
Each  of  these  shoots  will  then  throw  out  roots  around  its  base, 
and  in  fall  or  winter  they  are  dug,  beginning  at  the  furthest 
end  of  the  cane,  cutting  the  roots  with  the  spade  at  'pf^per 
length;  the  plants  are  divided  by  cutting  behind  each 
shoot  with  the  pruning  shears,  when  each  will  have  its  own 
system  of  roots,  the  shoot  making  the  stem  of  the  vine, 
which  can  be  shortened  in  at  planting  to  the  proper  length, 
or  this  can  be  done  when  they  are  dug.  (Fig.  4.)  They  make 


40 


'4 RAPE  CULTURE  AND 


FlG.  4. 

very  good,  strong  plants.  The  same,  or  a  similar  process  may 
also  be  followed  on  young  growing  canes  in  summer  (summer 
layering).  These  will  not  make  quite  as  strong  plants  as 
spring  layering,  but  has  the  advantage  that  it  can  be  done 
after  the  plowing  and  hoeing  in  spring  has  been  finished,  and 
therefore  does  not  hinder  from  cultivating  both  ways,  which 
layering  in  Spring  will  not  permit.  For  this  purpose,  strong 
growing  young  shoots  should  be  left  as  near  the  surface  of 
the  ground  as  possible,  as  the  layers  will  not  root  well  when 
they  must  be  bent  down,  and  afterwards  raised  again,  but 
should  remain  as  near  the  horizontal  position  as  possible. 
They  are  therefore  left  to  trail  along  the  ground  and  in  the 
middle  of  June  (here  in  Northern  California,)  their  leader  or 
end  is  pinched  off,  so  that  the  laterals  will  grow  more  vigor- 
ously. They  are  then  laid  in  shallow  trenches,  about  two 
inches  deep,  and  covered  with  finely  pulverized  earth.  The 
leaves  opposite  the  laterals  on  the  main  shoot  may  be  taken 
off  for  greater  convenience,  also  to  pack  the  ground  more 
closely  around  the  laterals.  When  the  ground  is  filled  up 
around  them,  they  should  have  a  watering,  which  will  assist 
greatly  in  the  formation  of  roots,  and  the  laterals  raised  as 
much  as  possible  to  a  horizontal  position.  For  fall,  they  are 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


41 


divided  up,  as  each  lateral  will  generally  make  its  own  system 
of  roots,  similar  as  in  spring  layering. 

Layering  to  fill  vacancies  in  old  vineyards  differs  in  so  far, 
as  a  trench  is  dug  from  the  parent  vine  to  the  vacant  place,  a 
young  cane,  grown  for  that  purpose  is  then  pruned  long 
enough  to  reach  to  the  vacant  spot,  but  the  trench  must  be 
dug  enough  to  be  below  the  reach  of  the  plow,  say  10  inches. 
The  cane  is  then  bent  down  sharply  at  the  mother  vine  into 
the  trench;  laid  on  its  bottom,  and  bent  nearly  at  an  angle 
at  the  vacancy,  where  one  or  two  buds  are  left  above  the 
ground.  (Fig.  5.)  The  trench  is  then  filled  up,  andasthe  layer 


FIG.  5, 

draws  nourishment  from  the  parent  vine,  and  also  forms  roots  at 
every  joint  below  ground,  it  makes  a  very  strong  growth,  and 
is  able  to  bear  the  second  season,  when  it  is  generally  de- 
tached from  the  mother  plant  with  the  pruning  shears. 
Every  one  knows  who  has  ever  tried  it,  that  it  is  almost  im- 
possible to  fill  vacancies  with  young  plants,  when  the  vineyard 
has  come  to  bearing  size.  Then  this  comes  in  as  the  only 


42  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

remedy.  It  is  easily  perceived,  however,  that  this  is  also  a 
tax  on  the  mother  vine,  and  allowance  must  be  made  for  it  in 
pruning. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE  PHYLLOXERA  QUESTION. 

That  this  is  a  serious  one,  likely  to  effect  our  industry  in  all 
its  branches,  will  hardly  be  denied  by  anyone.  If  we  look  at 
the  devastated  vineyards  of  Europe,  if  we  consider  the  ruin  it 
has  brought  to  thousands  of  formerly  happy  and  contented 
homes  in  France,  how  its  ravages  have*  decimated  this  leading 
industry,  so  that  now  they  do  not  produce  wine  enough  for 
their  own  consumption,  but  must  buy  where  they  formerly  al- 
most supplied  the  world;  how  its  ravages  are  already  felt  in 
Algiers,  in  Austria  and  wherever  vines  are  grown, —  we  will 
hardly  question  that  it  is  the  great  "disaster  threatening  every- 
where, including  this  continent.  Indeed,  we  have  evidence 
sufficient  of  its  destructiveness  in  this  State,  to  convince  us 
that  it  is  the  most  formidable  enemy  of  our  industry  which  we 
have  to  encounter.  It  is  worse  than  useless  to  try  to  ignore 
it,  as  has  been  done  in  some  sections  of  the  State,  it  will 
make  itself  seen  and  felt,  and  no  mechanical  or  chemical 
means  have  as  yet  been  found  that  are  of  real  practical  value. 
All  the  insecticides  that  have  so  far  been  tried,  have  proved 
too  costly  and  impractical  in  their  application;  and  we  must 
resort  at  last  to  the  only  practical  preventative,  now  recog- 
nized by  all  nations  to  be  their  salvation,  viz.,  "  American 
resistant  vines." 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  43 

r~ 

But  while  the  phylloxera  is  the  greatest  enemy  to  the  grape- 
vine, yet  its  ravages  to  a  certain  extent  may  be  a  "blessing  in 
disguise,"  especially  for  us  here,  where  there  is  already  the 
cry  of  over-production.  It  may  to  a  certain  extent  prevent 
this,  and  has  already  decreased  the  production  very  seriously 
in  certain  sections  of  the  State.  It  will  naturally  destroy  a 
large  amount  of  Mission,  Malvasia,  and  others  of  the  old,  in- 
different varieties,  helping  to  take  their  wines  out  of  the  mar- 
ket, and  making  room  for  a  better  product  from  choice  vari- 
eties, grafted  on  the  young  vines  of  American  stock,  and 
make  a  better  reputation  and  prices  for  our  vines.  It  may 
kill  out  the  vines  on  many  locations  not  suited  to  them,  and 
thus  improve  our  coming  product  indirectly  in  many  ways. 
If  we  plant  American  vines  on  soils  really  adapted  to  them, 
we  need  have  no  fears  of  the  ultimate  resultf]  As  the  first 
step,  to  successfully  fight  the  enemy  is  to  know  where  and 
how  to  find  him,  I  have  quoted  liberally  from  the  report  of 
Prof.  F.  W.  Morse,  whose  close  study  of  the  insect  and  its 
habits  at  Berkeley  and  elsewhere  have  made  him  entirely  fa- 
miliar with  it  in  California,  and  as  it  differs  somewhat  in  its 
habits  here  from  those  observed  by  European  authorities, 
they  will  be  of  greater  value  to  us  than  theirs. 
- 

i.     OBSERVATIONS  ON  THE  LIFE  HISTORY  AND 

HABITS  OF  THE  PHYLLOXERA  IN 

CALIFORNIA. 

Made  from  1881  to  1886  by  F.  W.  Morse,  Assistant  in  the  General 
Agricultural  Laboratory. 

In  the  following  pages  I  give  a  summary  of  the  results  of 
observations  made  upon  the  phylloxera,  since  its  discovery  in 
the  University  vineyard  plot  in  November  of  1881.  Partial 
reports  of  the  same  have  already  appeared  in  previous  publi- 


44  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

cations  of  the  Agricultural  Department,  the  whole  of  which, 
with  additional  observations  made  since,  are  here  arranged  in 
a  somewhat  modified  form. 

The  observation  was  taken  up  immediately  after  the  discov- 
ery of  the  insect,  the  object  at  first  being  simply  to  study  the 
more  prominent  types  here,  in  order  to  become  familiar  with 
the  prevailing  forms  generally  known  to  exist  in  other  vine- 
yards; and,  also,  to  note  any  special  habits  wherein  they 
might  differ  from  those  observed  in  other  countries.  No 
special  attention  was  originally  intended  to  be  given  to  the 
prosecution  of  new  investigations  tending  toward  the  settle- 
ment of  disputed  points  regarding  the  biology  of  the  insect. 

No  stated  time  was  set  apart  for  this  work,  which  has  at 
all  times  been  carried  along  in  conjunction  with  other  Uni- 
versity duties.  The  available  apparatus,  too,  has  not  always 
been  all  that  could  be  desired  for  obtaining  thorough  and 
complete  results. 

At  the  outset,  only  one  form  of  the  insect  was  recognized, 
but  as  the  work  advanced,  new  and  unfamiliar  forms  continu- 
ally appeared,  until  we  have,  by  a  happy  coincidence  of 
special  fitness  of  vine  varieties  and  surroundings,  witnessed 
the  production  of  most  of  the  forms  known  to  foreign  inves- 
tigators. 

The  importance  of  such  a  line  of  investigation,  under  such 
circumstances,  becomes  apparent,  when  we  consider  that 
among  the  various  forms  which  the  insect  is  capable  of 
assuming  only  a  part,  and  these  of  the  forms  which  are  least 
easily  spread,  have  thus  far  been  seen  in  appreciable  numbers 
in  California  vineyards.  A  solution  of  this  apparent  diver- 
gence from  the  habits  of  the  insect,  as  observed  elsewhere, 
gives  direction  to  the  investigations  which  have  heen  car- 
ried on. 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  45 

THE    UNIVERSITY    VINEYARD    PLOT. 

The  University  vineyard  plot,  in  which  the  field  observa- 
tions were  made,  and  the  specimens  for  laboratory  work  were 
taken,  is  situated  upon  the  north  side  of  the  University 
grounds,  and  upon  the  extreme  east  of  that  part  of  the  tract 
which  was  placed  under  the  control  of  the  Agricultural  De- 
partment, and  set  apart  for  experimental  purposes.  It  has  a 
southeast  exposure,  which  renders  it  somewhat  more  favora- 
ble than  the  lower  lands  to  the  earlier  "  putting  out"  of  the 
vine  and  consequent  longer  season  which  is  needed  in  this 
locality. 

The  soil  is  a  heavy,  refractory  clay  loam,  not  easily  culti- 
vated except  upon  the  surface,  and  is  underlaid  by  a  stiffer 
clay  at  a  depth  of  a  few  inches,  followed  at  a  slightly  lower 
depth,  by  an  intermixture  of  coarse  gravel  and  rocks,  thus 
forming  a  soil  ill  adapted  to  vine  growth,  and  a  sub-soil  not 
easily  penetrated  by  the  roots.  The  plot,  which  is  from  the 
nature  of  the  soil  difficult  to  drain,  is  relieved  of  this  trouble, 
to  a  great  extent,  by  the  steep  inclination  and  loose-walled 
bank  on  the  lower  side. 

The  total  number  of  old  vines  (and  some  young  ones  in- 
termixed, which  have  been  grafted  on  resistant  stocks) 
amount  to  only  sixty-eight,  including,  beside  the  common 
vinifera  varieties,  some  that  in  other  countries  have  shown 
special  fitness  for  certain  forms  of  the  phylloxera,  'and  which 
are  not  found  among  the  infected  vineyards  of  our  State. 
Some  of  these  are  hybrids  of  stock,  elsewhere  bearing  the  gall 
type  of  insects  in  abundance. 

Thus  we  have  been  specially  fortunate  in  having  a  collec- 
tion of  varieties  which,  presumably,  make  it  possible  to  pro- 
duce and  study  all  types  that  have  been  observed  elsewhere. 

The  Winter  State  of  the  Insect. — -The  first  important  point 
to  be  considered  was  to  determine  the  habits  and  movements 
of  the  insect  at  different  seasons  of  the  year,  and  especially  to 


46  (iRAPE  CULTL'BE  AND 

note  their  condition  during  the  winter.  This  was  accom- 
plished by  repeated  examinations  during  each  of  the  winter 
months  of  vines  most  productive  of  the  insect.  No  obvious 
movement  to  lower  parts  of  the  root-system,  such  as  was  pre- 
dicted, was  noticeable;  but  merely  a  dying  out  of  the  differ- 
ent forms  upon  the  older  and  most  decayed  parts  of  the  root; 
the  healthier  fibres  and  wood  always  supporting  the  insect 
most  abundantly.  Even  in  mid-winter  the  wingless  root 
form  appeared  clear  to  the  surface,  and  even  above  the  ground, 
where  tuberous  spots  afforded  them  nourishment  and  protec- 
tion. If  the  winter  proved  too  severe,  portions  of  the  root- 
bark  were  often  found  covered  with  black  "lumps"  of  dead 
phylloxera  mingled  with  small  and  shriveled  brown  ones,  in 
positions  similar  to  those  in  which  they  were  found  late  in 
the  fall. 

FIELD  OBSERVATIONS  DURING  THE  SEASON  OF  1881-2. — 
The  observations  during  the  winter  of  1881-2,  which  was  cold 
and  was  followed  by  a  late  spring,  revealed  the  insects  numer- 
ously settled  upon  all  parts  of  the  roots,  and  even  in  mid-win- 
ter at  the  surface  of  the  ground  on  the  base  of  a  last  year's 
sucker.  On  December  eighth  the  insect  was  found  in  de- 
creasing numbers  on  the  old  roots,  and  confined  to  groups  of 
five  or  six  on  the  healthiest  parts  of  young  roots.  They  were 
mostly  of  the  mother  form  and  only  a  few  larvae.  Later  in 
December  the  preponderance  of  the  mother  form  was  still  ap- 
parent, and  the  general  settled  conditions  of  the  groups  was 
specially  noted. 

Frequent  examinations  during  tne  months  of  January,  Feb- 
ruary, and  March,  showed  no  special  change,  save  a  more 
sluggish  condition  and  a  darkening  of  color. 

It  was  not  until  the  twenty-eighth  of  April  that  signs  of  re- 
turning life  were  visible.  Scattering  eggs,  in  groups,  from 
three  to  five  in  number,  very  transparent  and  quite  large, 
were  found  surrounding  some  of  the  more  mature  insects 


WINK-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  47 

which  were  then  becoming  yellow  but  still  seem  not  to  have 
moved  from  their  winter  positions.  No  very  young  larvae 
were  to  be  found,  although  they  were  soon  after,  May  first, 
hatched  from  a  bottled  specimen  taken  from  the  vineyard  at 
this  time  and  placed  under  more  favorable  conditions,  in  a 
warm  laboratory.  A  casual  examination  of  specimens  put 
aside  in  an  unsealed  fruit-jar  proved  the  roots  to  be  literally 
covered  with  insects,  only  a  few  of  which  were  mothers  ;  the 
remainder  consisted  of  young  larvae  and  eggs.  The  warm  and 
even  temperature  of  the  room  was  undoubtedly  the  cause  of 
their  earlier  activity,  and  demonstrates  the  fact  that  a  rela- 
tively high  temperature  is  all  that  is  required  for  the  continu- 
ance of  activity  during  the  winter.  This  presumption  is  fur- 
ther borne  out  by  their  earlier  appearance  in  1884,  when  the 
spring  was  fully  six  weeks  in  advance  of  an  average  year.  In 
the  early  part  of  Mar^h,  before  the  beginning  of  the  budding 
of  the  vine,  specimens  could  be  found  which  would  do  credit 
to  the  insect  under  the  favorable  conditions  of  fall. 

The  month  of  May  showed  a  slow  but  steady  increase  of 
the  different  forms,  beginning  particularly  under  the  bark  of 
older  roots,  and  later  increasing  most  rapidly  on  fibrous  roots 
of  the  present  year's  growth.  The  insects  seemed  to  be  of  a 
more  greenisji  color  than  at  other  times.  A  marked  increase 
in  the  rapidity  of  production  was  noticeable  during  the  last 
days  of  June;  still  the  spread  had  not  yet  become  general  for 
the  season. 

First  Appearance  of  the  Winged  Form. — It  was  in  the  fol- 
lowing month  (July,  1882)  that  the  first  indication  of  the 
winged  form  appeared.  Insects  resembling  larvae  were  found, 
with  black  antennae  and  leg?,  and  upon  each  side  of  the  back, 
extending  along  the  body,  were  dark  spots,  covering  the  ru- 
dimentary wings  which  distinguishes  this  as  the  wing-pad,  or 
"pupa  "  stage  of  development.  One  of  these  insects  was  pre- 
served, and  by  the  twenty-sixth  of  July  had  developed  into  a 


48  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

small,  live,  fertile  winged  phylloxera,  and  was  transferred  to 
a  small  vial,  where  she  laid  a  single  egg  and  died.  Others  of 
these  pupae  were  found  later  without  much  difficulty  on  simi- 
lar roots  ;  and  others  of  the  winged  form  have  since  been 
easily  developed.  Their  changes  during  metamorphosis  into 
complete  forms  were  watched  with  exceeding  interest,  but 
need  not  be  described  here. 

Some  of  the  insects  which  were  most  developed,  and  had 
the  wing-pads  well  formed,  were  placed  upon  a  glass  slide, 
covered  with  a  watch  glass,  and  then  properly  arranged  under 
a  microscope.  The  transformation  soon  took  place.  A  shed- 
ding of  the  skin  precedes  the  spreading  of  the  wings, 
and  is  begun  by  the  dark  skin  separating  horizontally  over  the 
wing-pads,  a  part  shedding  toward  the  abdominal  segment, 
and  the  remainder  passing  over  the  head  and  legs,  thereby 
changing  these  members  and  the  antennae  to  a  much  lighter 
color.  This  operation,  in  one  case,  was  completed  in  about 
fifteen  minutes.  The  wings,  which  appeared  to  be  folded  in 
a  light  colored  bunch  directly  across  the  back,  now  part  in 
the  middle,  giving  them  the  appearance  of  two  white  or  light- 
colored  sacks.  These  gradually  expand  laterally  from  the 
base,  continually  carrying  the  apparent  casings  in  a  bunch  at 
the  end  of  the  wings  until  the  full  length  is  reached,  after 
which  the  greater  part  of  the  spreading  is  done.  The  whole 
apparent  casings  are  merely  folded  wings. 

One  hour  and  fifteen  minutes  was  consumed  in  passing 
from  the  beginning  of  the  shedding  of  the  skin  to  the  com- 
plete winged  insect,  which  soon  became  active  and  began 
crawling  abou*-.  The  body  of  the  insect,  in  the  meantime, 
had  passed  from  a  light  hue  to  a  more  intense  dark  yellow, 
or  golden  color,  while  the  wings,  which  before  the  moulting 
were  black,  pass  to  a  light  or  white  opaque,  then  become 
transparent,  and,  as  they  spread,  become  thinner  and  darker, 
and  in  the  fully  developed  condition  are  almost  black. 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  49 

A  newly  developed  winged  insect  was  taken  from  a  moist 
bottle  and  placed  upon  a  glass  plate,  where  she  soon  made 
attempts  to  fly.  Her  wet  wings  were  repeatedly  brought  per- 
pendicularly over  her  back  and  rubbed  together,  apparently 
to  free  them  from  moisture,  and  then  she  attempted  to  leap, 
or  fly,  often  raising,  by  a  peculiar  curve,  from  two  to  six 
inches  high.  With  the  last  attempt  she  flew  away. 

Roots  Producing  the  Winged  Form. — -The  vigorous,  bushy, 
fibrous  growth,  or  network  of  root<  around  the  tap-root,  evi- 
dently caused  by  manuring  and  moisture,  seemed  best  to  ful- 
fill the  necessary  conditions  for  the  development  of  the  winged 
females.  It  was  later  shown  that  these  fibrous  *oots  were 
specially  productive  of  this  form;  in  fact,  it  is  very  seldom 
that  it  is  found  on  other  roots. 

Conditions  of  their  Development — Invasion  of  1884. — Here 
it  may  be  well  to  suggest  as  a  possible  explanation  for  the 
greater  production  of  the  winged  form  in  France,  that  the 
more  thorough  fertilization  of  the  vineyards  in  that  country 
has  favored  a  more  general  growth  of  the  suiface  roots  upon 
which  the  winged  form  is  mainly  produced  ;  also,  that  the 
late  spring  and  summer  rains  bring  about  a  similar  condition 
of  growth.  The  summer  rains  alone  of  France,  which  last 
far  into  August  and  September,  would  be  quite  sufficient  to 
produce  surface  roots  of  the  kind  required  to  produce  winged 
insects  in  great  abundance.  It  is  just  previous  to  this  time 
that  the  winged  invasion  occurs,  when  the  insect  is  carried 
in  swarms  to  adjacent  vineyards.  This  is  a  point  which  I 
believe  has  never  been  suggested,  and  the  truth  of  which 
seems  to  be  supported  by  experience  in  this  State,  for  neither 
of  the  conditions  spoken  of  is  ordinarily  realized  to  any  ex- 
tent in  California.  But  the  unusual  summer  rains  that  oc- 
curred in  1884,  and  which  were  followed  by  such  a  great 
general  development  of  insect  pests  in  1885,  seemed  to  im- 
part also  to  that  of  the  winged  phylloxera,  a  similar  impetus  ; 


50  GRAPE  Cn/rURK  AND 

as  for  the  first  time  since  observations  were  begun,  this  form 
was  during  that  season  found  to  issue  in  swarms  like  those 
observed  elsewhere,  doubtless  greatly  increasing  its  spread. 

We  are  further  justified  in  supposing  that  there  must  be 
some  peculiar  condition  for  their  development  in  districts 
where  only  occasionally  evident  signs  of  their  workings  are 
visible  ;  and  in  no  case  have  the  winged  insects  been  found 
in  such  numbers  as  were  developed  in  1884. 

•At  the  middle  of  October,  1882,  the  insects  were  stilt 
numerous,  eggs  plentiful,  and  the  mothers  still  laying  ;  the 
winged  form  had  e'ntirely  disappeared.  About  the  middle  of 
November.  I  found  only  one  of  the  mother-lice  fully  devel- 
oped ;  the  remaining  insects  scattered  over  the  roots  were 
young  larvae,  healthy  and  quite  active.  Some  were  blackened 
and  lifeless,  but  still  retained  the  larval  form.  Only  one  egg 
was  found. 

December  twentieth  none  of  the  mother  insects  could  be 
found  ;  only  larvae,  bright  but  motionless,  were  present. 

SUMMARY    OF    OBSERVATIONS    IN     l88l  — 82. 

The  condition  of  the  insect  during  different  times  of  the 
year  may  therefore  be  summarized  as  follows  ;  There  is  a 
dull,  lifeless  condition  of  both  larvae  and  mother  lice  during  the 
winter,  lasting  until  about  the  middle  of  April  of  a  late  season, 
when  the  hibernating  mothers  begin  to  lay  their  eggs.  The 
young  larvae  soon  begin  hatching  out  and  scatter  to  all  parts  of 
the  roots.  The  increase  is  very  slow  until  the  middle  of 
June1. '  The  winged  form  begins  developing  about  the  first  of 
July.  Eggs  are  most  numerous  about  the  last  of  July  or  first 
part  of  August.  The  old  mother  lice  are  soon  found  in 
decreasing  numbers,  and  young  larvae  are  most  abundant.  A 
gradual  decrease  in  the  number  of  insects  begins  about  the 
first  of  October.  No  eggs,  or  scarcely  any,  are  to  be  found 
after  this  month.  Very  little  action  or  life  is  noticeable  after 
November. 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  51 

OBSERVATIONS  IN  THE  LABORATORY,  FROM  1881-1885. — 
For  the  better  verification  of  the  facts  observed  in  the  field, 
and  especially  for  the  observation  of  the  habits  of  the  insects 
during  propagation,  a  series  of  laboratory  experiments  was 
•carried  on  simultaneously  with  the  field  observations. 

Conservation  of  Root  Specimens. — The  first  difficulty  met 
with  was  to  preserve  the  root  specimen,  in  such  a  shape  that 
it  would  not  mould,  and  yet  remain  sufficiently  moist  to 
afford  sustenance  to  the  insects.  This  is  best  accomplished 
by  placing  a  piece  of  root  containing  the  required  number  of 
insects  into  a  wide-mouthed  bottle,  supplied  with  a  close-fit- 
ting cork.  If  it  becomes  necessary  to  remove  the  cork  very 
often,  a  few  drops  of  water  may  be  dropped  into  the  bottom 
of  the  bottle  to  supply  any  lost  moisture,  and  then,  by 
regulating  the  temperature,  the  water  can  be  vaporized  and 
condensed  so  as  to  reach  all  parts  of  the  root.  Some  speci- 
mens were  kept  in  the  sunlight,  with  a  good  circulation  of  air 
through  the  bottle,  but  the  insect  did  not  thrive  under  this 
treatment.  Roots  thus  treated  are  more  difficult  to  keep  in 
good  condition,  and  the  insect  becomes  more  restless.  A 
cool  dark  place  seems  best  fitted  for  these  experiments. 

The  leading  questions  studied  were  : 

1.  Number  of  eggs  laid  by  each  mother  louse. 

2.  Rate  of  laying. 

3.  Time  required  to  hatch  them  into  larvae. 

4.  Time  from  the  hatching  of  larvae  to  the  egg-laying  age. 

5.  Pupa  form. 

6.  Winged  form. 

Number  of  Eggs  Laid. — Two  or  three  specimens  contain- 
ing isolated  mothers  were  placed  in  bottles  and  observed 
every  few  days.  The  highest  number  of  eggs  from  any  of 
these  insects  was  about  seventy-five.  Numerous  bottled  roots 
have  specimens  of  sixty  to  seventy  eggs  and  larvae  together.  It 
is  not  uncommon  to  see  a  nest  of  forty  to  fifty  in  a  row,  upon 


52  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

one  end  of  which  the  young  larvae  are  just  hatching  out  and 
moving  away,  while  at  the  other  end  are  newly  laid  eggs  and  the 
old  mother,  now  reduced  to  a  very  small,  dark  colored  ball 
without  apparent  life  or  insect  shape.  This  large  number 
is  not  so  frequently  found  in  the  vineyards. 

The  most  prolific  insects  do  not  seem  to  produce  a  gener- 
ation of  the  numerous  egg-laying  kind.  As  soon  as  the  eggs 
are  hatched  into  larvae  the  latter  move  away,  while  those  in- 
sects producing  eggs  that  are  destined  to  become  laying 
mothers  lay  but  few  eggs,  which  when  hatched  move  less 
rapidly  than  the  other  kind,  and  are  often  found  in  groups. 

Rate  of  Laying  and  Time  of  Hatching. — To  determine  the 
rate  of  laying,  properly  isolated  individuals  were  watched  during 
their  complete  season  of  laying.  The  rate  was  found  to  be 
very  irregular,  depending  largely  upon  circumstances.  It 
often  amounted  to  five  per  day,  while  at  other  times  the  in- 
sects ceased  laying  altogether  for  several  days.  A  single 
individual  laid  thirty-five  in  seven  days  ;  another  thirty-four 
in  two  weeks.  At  the  end  of  four  weeks  the  whole  generation 
had  left  the  spot.  The  relatively  limited  supply  of  sap  fur- 
nished by  a  detached  root  probably  served  to  restrict  the 
number  of  eggs  laid.  Still  another  insect,  under  less  favor- 
able circumstances,  surrounded  by  a  meniscus  of  water, 
which  kept  her  almost  submerged,  continued  laying  for  a 
much  longer  time  and  at  a  much  slower  rate.  It  was  found 
that  it  required  about  thirteen  days  to  hatch  the  eggs. 

Duration  of  Larval  Condition. — By  deducting  the  time  for 
hatching  from  the  total  number  of  days  from  the  first  egg-lay- 
ing to  the  egg-producing  period  of  the  second  generation,  we 
have  the  time  of  the  larval  condition.  This  was  found  to  be 
about  seventeen  days. 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  53 

PUPA      FORM. 

Much  interest  attaches  to  this  form,  since  it  is  through  it 
that  we  know  the  conditions  which  will  produce  the  winged 
form.  The  later  is  found  with  great  difficulty  upon  the  vine, 
while  the  former  is  readily  distinguished  among  its  associates, 
the  common  root  louse  or  larva,  which  is  first  sought  after  in 
the  examination  of  an  infested  vineyard.  The  pupae  once 
found,  it  becomes  easy  to  trace  them  to  the  winged  form, 
which  is  usually  near  by. 

Conditions  Governing  the  Production  of  Pupce. — My  first 
observations  on  the  fertile  winged  form  were  made  on  speci- 
mens accidently  produced  in  the  laboratory.  By  tracing  back 
to  its  origin  the  root  upon  which  these  first  individuals  were 
found,  the  needful  conditions  and  surroundings  could  be  de- 
termined, and  thus  the  winged  form  could  be  sought  for 
more  intelligently,  and  found  in  greater  Tiumbers.  As  before 
noted,  the  small,  soft,  fibrous  rootlets  of  the  current  year's 
growth  had  seemed  to  be  most  productive  of  the  form  from 
which  the  winged  insect  is  developed. 

Movements  and  Transformation  of  the  Pupa  Form, —  The 
movements  of  pupa,  or  wing-pad  insect,  observed  chiefly 
during  1884,  were  not  found  to  be  altogether  along  the 
smaller  roots,  and  thence  up  the  main  body  to  the  crown  of 
the  root,  as  is  usually  supposed,  but  the  insects  frequently 
left  the  roots  and  passed  up  through  the  soil,  which  in  no 
place  was  less  than  three  inches  deep.  This  movement  af- 
forded an  excellent  opportunity  for  determining  where  the 
transformation  into  the  winged  form  takes  place. 

The  insect  in  various  stages  of  development  could  be 
found  in  the  earth  from  the  surface  to  the  roots,  the  most  in- 
complete forms  being  found  deepest  below  the  surface  of  the 
ground.  Some  were  found  under  stones,  and  in  such  posi- 
tions as  to  place  it  beyond  a  doubt  that  they  passed  through 
the  changes  underground,  and  came  to  the  surface  in  a  trans- 


-54  ORATE  CULTl'RK  AND 

formed  condition,  contrary  to  the  accepted  belief  of  a  trans- 
formation at  the  surface  of  the  ground. 

THK  WINGED  FORM. 

The  late  rains  of  the  summer  of  1884,  the  season  in  which 
nearly  all  the  field  studies  of  the  pupa  and  winged  form  were 
made,  produced  a  generous  supply  of  the  white,  club-shaped 
rootlets,  thus  enabling  us  with  properly  arranged  "traps," 
and  bottles  buried  in  the  soil,  to  study  the  winged  and  other 
forms.  'A  beaker  was  also  inverted  over  some  of  the  bared 
roots,  and  in  one  or  two  days  an  abundant  supply  of  the 
winged  form  was  found  flying  about,  and  crawling  upon  the 
side  of  the  beaker  which  was  most  exposed  to  the  light  and 
warmth.  The  young  larvae  which  left  the  roots  for  the 
the  smooth  glass  constituted  a  large  proportion  of  the  active 
insects.  A  bottle  which  was  in  a  cooler  place,  showed  them 
in  far  less  numbers. 

A  steady  and  rapid  production  of  winged  individuals  en- 
sued from  the  beginning  of  the  experiment,  August  twentieth, 
through  September,  and  a  few  were  developed  even  later. 
A  large  number  of  the  confined  winged  insects  soon  laid  eggs, 
often  as  many  as  five  for  each  individual.  None  of  these 
eggs,  however,  were  observed  to  hatch;  hence  no  sexual  in- 
dividuals were  produced. 

Migration  of  Wtnged  Insects. — In  arranging  the  glass  jar 
"  traps"  the  soil  was  considerably  loosened  up,  and  thus  was 
prepared  the  way  for  the  migration  of  the  winged  insects,  which 
occurred  about  the  twentieth  of  August,  when  they  could  be 
found  in  considerable  numbers  crawling  about  upon  the  small 
lumps  of  earth,  preparatory  to  taking  wing.  Only  one  was 
actually  seen  to  fly  up  to  the  vine,  although  others  were 
found  quietly  fixed  upon  the  under  side  of  some  of  the 
leaves.  This  passing  through  the  loosened  earth,  and  later 
through  the  unmolested  soil,  continued  up  to  the  tenth  of 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  O-) 

October,  when  the  rains  fallen  a  few  days  before  put  an  end 
to  the  development. 

We  had  thus  a  continuous  movement  of  this  form  coming 
to  the  surface  of  the  ground,  not  only  from  the  loosened 
earth,  but  as  was  seen  later,  also  from  the  harder  and  unmo- 
lested soil.  This  was  kept  up  until  the  fibrous  roots  were 
destitute  of  pupse,  though  still  badly  infested  with  young 
larvae. 

After  the  discovery  of  the  winged  form  in  the  University 
vineyard,  a  considerable  increase  in  numbers  was  noticed  else- 
where. Never  before  had  it  appeared  so  plentifully  as  dur- 
ing the  summer  of  1884.  While  the  peculiarly  favorable 
conditions  of  root  growth  found  at  Berkeley  may  not  obtain 
in  all  vineyards  elsewhere,  still  equally  favorable  ones  may 
be  presented.  Yet,  the  more  numerous  cases  of  obvious 
rapid  devastation  raise  a  strong  presumption  in  favor  of  the 
belief  of  a  more  widespread  increase  of  this  pest  since,  than 
before  1884. 

Movement  of  Young  Lame  through  the  Soil. — A  peculiar 
circumstance  was  noticed  on  the  twenty-sixth  of  August,  1884, 
in  the  appearance  of  a  large  number  of  larvae  upon  the  sur- 
face of  the  ground.  They  were  found  as  much  as  two  feet 
from  the  st^ck,  and  from  three  to  twelve  inches  from  the 
fine  roots,  as  well  as  through  the  soil  to  the  roots.  The  sig- 
nificance of  their  appearing  in  this  manner  can  be  appreciated 
when  we  learn  that  they  crawl  upon  bits  of  rubbish,  sticks, 
leaves,  etc.,  upon  the  spot,  and  even  take  kindly  to  growing 
canes  placed  in  their  way. 

Just  how  far  they  can  travel  on  the  surface  of  the  ground 
in  this  manner  we  are  not  able  to  say,  but  certainly  it  in- 
creases the  probability  of  their  being  transported  upon  boxes 
and  loose  packages  which  are  scattered  so  promiscuously 
about  the  vineyard  .at  that  time  of  the  year.  It  further  shows 
that  the  insect  is  not  altogether  dependent  upon  interlacing 


56  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

% 

roots  beneath  the  ground  for  the  means  of  spreading  from 
vine  to  vine.  Small  lumps  of  earth  below  the  surface  of  the 
ground,  supplied  with  the  smallest  rootlets,  were  thoroughly 
infested  with  the  insect.  Thus  it  is  evident  that  the  rapidity 
of  infection,  or  spreading,  will  surely  be  influenced  by  the 
nature  ot  the  soil,  /.  e.,  the  greater  or  less  facility  with  which 
the  insect  can  travel  over  it,  or  along  the  cracks  in  heavy 
soil.  In  sandy  soils  the  progress  of  the  larvae  is  very  slow 
and  toilsome. 

THE  GALL    LOUSE. 

Up  to  August  twenty-sixth,  1884,  no  specimens  of  the  gall 
louse,  or  leaf  inhabiting  form  of  the  phylloxera,  had  been 
identified  at  the  University,  or  elsewhere  in  California,  so  far 
as  known.  At  that  time  the  fresh  young  leaves  near  the 
ends  of  three  canes,  which  stretched  from  a  "  Canada  "  vine 
towards  an  infested  stock,  bore  a  few  peculiarly  formed  galls, 
containing  egg-laying  mother  lice  as  well  as  eggs,  and  numer- 
ous larvae.  A  few  isolated  and  abandoned  ones  were  also 
found  on  the  old  leaves  nearer  the  stock  of  the  vine.  This 
arrangement  of  a  few  isolated  and  odd  galls  nearest  the 
stump,  and  the  peculiar  fact  that  all  the  canes  infested  are 
suckers  coming  from  near  the  surface  of  the  ground,  suggests 
the  probability  that  the  infection  comes  from  the  roots  of  the 
vine  rather  than  through  other  means.  It  is  also  noticeable 
that  one  of  these  canes  passes  directly  up  through  a  portion 
of  the  foliage,  and  still  does  not  infect  the  adjoining  canes. 
Why  the  gall  louse  should  appear  just  at  this  time,  when  the 
conditions  for  the  rapid  production  of  other  forms  were  fav- 
orable, and  not  at  other  times,  is  a  question  not  easily  an- 
swered. We  are  aware  that  similar  freaks  of  change  have 
occurred  in  eastern  experience  in  numerous  localities,  where 
in  1870  the  gall  louse  prevailed  largely,  the  following  year  it 
had  almost  entirely  disappeared,  or  in  some  instances  had 
attempted,  with  more  or  less  success,  to  locate  upon  other 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  bi 

varieties.  The  change  during  that  same  year  even  extended 
to  France,  showing  that  atmospheric  changes  could  not  be 
its  sole  cause. 

Influence  of  Root  Conditions. — It  is  more  probably  attrib- 
utable to  the  influence  of  the  root.  During  the  whole  inves- 
tigation there  has  been  noticed  a  very  decided  effect  upon 
the  different  forms,  caused  undoubtedly  by  the  nature  of  the 
rtfots  upon  which  the  insects  are  living.  In  our  laboratory 
experiments  the  larvae  are  much  smaller,  more  active  or  rest- 
less, and  apparently  more  numerous  than  upon  roots  in  their 
normal  state;  our  specimens  being,  of  course,  drier,  and  in  a 
poorer  condition.  The  wing-pad  insects,  in  the  vineyard, 
are  formed  only  upon  the  smallest  and  most  tuberous  roots, 
and  in  proportionately  decreasing  numbers  as  the  roots  be- 
come harder,  scarcely  ever  appearing  upon  those  which  have 
become  tough  and  woody. 

Identity  of  the  Root  and  Leaf  Louse.  —  Regarding  the  above 
anomalous  appearance  of  the  gall-louse  type,  it  should  be 
noticed  that  it  has  come  upon  a  vine  which  has  had  no  com- 
munication with  any  outside  of  those  with  which  it  has  been 
associated  for  years,  and  probably  has  had  no  way  of  becom- 
ing infected  with  any  foreign  type.  If,  as  some  maintain, 
there  be  no  direct  relation  between  the  two  types,  how  is  it 
that  the  vine  has  borne  them  for  a  single  year  only,  and  that 
they  have  not  appeared  again  in  1885?  They  -came  at  a 
time,  too,  when  we  know  that  the  temporary  change  of  the 
nature  of  the  root  system  of  the  vine,  caused  by  seasonal 
peculiarities,  had  materially  changed  the  nature  of  the  other 
forms  produced  upon  them.  It  is  said  that  climatic  changes 
influence,  to  a  certain  extent,  the  type  which  shall  predom- 
inate. If  it  holds  in  this  case,  it  must  be  through  the  stimu- 
lating influence  of  climate  on  the  peculiar  root  growth  which 
made  possible  the  development  of  a  large  number  of  winged 
insects,  which  may  possibly  have  been  the  means  through 


58  (fRAPP:  CULTURE  AND 

which  the  gall-type  were  developed;  all  extraordinary  growth 
of  vine  having  disappeared  before  the  gall-type  had  been 
noticed  to  any  extent.  It  at  least  seems  probable,  that  the 
root-inhabiting  form  had  changed  its  habit  toward  that  of  the 
gall-louse. 

So  soon  as  this  opportunity  of  studying  the  relations  of  the 
two  types  were  presented,  an  attempt  was  made  to  infect  a 
clean  cane  of  the  "  Canada"  vine  with  the  root-louse  com- 
ing from  the  "  Cornucopia"  and  appearing  upon  the  surface 
of  the  ground. 

A  cane  was  bent  from  the  opposite  side  of  the  resistant 
vine,  and  its  terminal  leaves  fastened  to  an  infested  spot  of 
soil.  The  leaves  and  part  of  the  canes  were  soon  covered 
with  young  larvae,  and  a  few  quiet  winged  insects;  the  former 
passing  freely  about  upon  the  leaves  but  forming  no  galls,  or 
at  least  only  doubtful  or  abortive  attempts.  Some  of  the 
young  leaves  upon  the  infested  canes, were  pierced  by  young 
larvae,  which  had  settled  just  outside  of  the  fresh  galls,  and 
had  remained  until  a  red  dead  spot  had  been  formed. 
Others  of  the  larvae  were  seen  crawling  about;  but  they  did 
not  seem  to  establish  galls.  Contrary  to  the  usual  habit  of 
the  gall-louse,  they  kept  mostly  upon  the  under  side  of  the 
leaf. 

In  fact,  there  were  very  few  galls  formed  except  upon  the 
smallest  leaves.  One  of  these  delicate  leaves,  an  inch 
square,  bore  about  thirty  galls,  a  large  proportion  of  which 
contained  young  larvae,  which  were  -easily  seen  by  looking 
through  the  leaf  toward  the  light.  Some  galls  even  contained 
the  mother,  larvae,  and  eggs. 

It  thus  appears  that,  at  least  so  late  in  the  season,  the 
change  of  habit  from  root  to  leaf  is  not  readily  made. 

ENEMIES  TO  THE  PHVLLOXERA. — Of  the  known  ene?nies  to 
the  phylloxera,  only  two  forms  were  identified  during  our  ob- 
servations. The  phylloxera  thrips  were  seen  passing  about  in 


WINK-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  5D 

considerable  numbers  upon  the  leaves,  and  some  even  came 
from  the  galls,  many  of  which  they  had  cleared  of  their  in- 
habitants. A  few  specimens  of  the  tyrog/yphus,  or  phylloxera 
mite,  appeared  among  the  winged  insects  that  were  taken 
from  the  "trap;"  they  were  also  found  upon  the  roots  of 
adjoining  vines.  It  is,  therefore,  probable  that  its  usual  ene- 
mies have  accompanied  the  phylloxera  to  California. 

There  have  been  other  specimens  of  the  same  seen  at 
different  places,  especially  on  roots  taken  for  experimental 
purposes.  Some  were  found  on  the  fourteenth  of  April,  the 
root  specimen  having  been  taken  nearly  a  month  before. 

VARIETIES  OF  VINES  BEARING  THE  SEVERAL  FORMS. — In 
speaking  of  the  forms  found  during  the  investigations,  it 
must  not  be  understood  that  all  of  the  vines  are  productive  of 
the  same  forms;  nor  must  it  be  understood  that  when  we 
speak  of  the  rapid  production  of  any  particular  form  that  this 
applies  to  all  the  vines  infested.  We  are  specially  favored  in 
this  direction  by  having  in  our  vineyard  plot  a  few  vines  rep- 
resenting those  varieties  which  are  more  or  less  resistant  to 
either  type  of  the  phylloxera.  Only  one  vine  has  developed 
the  gall  type,  only  one  has  produced  the  winged  form  in 
appreciable  numbers,  others  only  when  transiently  assuming 
the  necessaiy  conditions  have  produced  them  at  all.  If  a 
slight  growth  of  soft  "tuberous"  rootlets  be  formed  we  may 
find  pupae  upon  them;  but  upon  the  rootlets  of  the  same  vine 
having  a  firmer  texture  none  will  be  found.  Upon  the 
"Cornucopia,"  however,  this  adaptability  of  rootlets  to  the 
production  of  the  winged  form  extends  to  roots  of  a  larger 
and  firmer  growth.  The  hybrid  of  the  West's  St.  Peters  and 
Clinton  has  produced  all  the  forms  we  have  thus  far  observed, 
except  the  gall  type,  thereby  showing  a  special  fitness  for  the 
production  of  the  root-inhabiting  types. 

Here,  too,  we  should  note  the  peculiarity  of  these  two 
vines,  adjoining  each  other,  hybrids  of  the  same  original 


60  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

varieties,  one  producing  the  gall  type  and  not  specially 
adapted  to  the  root  type,  and  the  other  producing  all  forms 
of  the  root  type  with  great  ease  and  during  the  longest 
period,  but  in  no  case  bearing  galls.  Nearly  all  the  observa- 
tions in  the  past  have  been  taken  from  this  vine.  It  still 
remains  strong  and  vigorous. 

DANGER  OF  SPREADING  BY  THE  WINGED  FORM.— The  fact 
that  the  winged  form,  so  far  as  it  appeared  in  considerable 
numbers,  was  limited  to  a  single  vine  in  our  vineyard  plot, 
necessarily  diminishes  greatly  the  probability  of  its  spreading 
to  any  other  vineyard  district  from  this  place,  and  by  this 
form.  If  all  the  vines  were  equally  productive  of  the  winged 
insect,  the  probabilities  for  infection  would  certainly  be 
greatly  multiplied;  but  there  would  still  be  great  doubts  as  to 
whether  they  would  be  carried  to  any  great  distance  and  find 
lodgment  in  a  spot  where  the  proper  conditions  for  continued 
life  obtain.  The  winged  insects  have  mostly  been  found 
crawling  upon  the  ground  quite  near  the  vine,  being  thus  pro- 
tected by  the  foliage  above  them  from  the  winds  which  might 
otherwise  take  them  up  into  the  air  and  transport  them  to 
other  districts.  A  few  scattering  ones  only  have  been  found 
on  the  foliage,  but  the  thick  screen  of  trees  and  the  ranges  of 
high  hills  in  the  direction  of  the  regular  winds  prevailing  at 
their  time  of  development,  renders  any  actual  danger  from 
this  source  exceedingly  remote. 

COMPARISON  OF  EASTERN  AND  CALIFORNIA  TYPES. 

As  a  basts  for  comparison  of  the  forms  which  have  come 
under  our  notice  with  those  known  to  exist  elsewhere,  I  in- 
sert the  following  tabulated  arrangement  of  the  various  forms 
which  this  insect  may  assume,  as  presented  in  a  report  by 
Professor  Riley.  It  shows  at  once  the  complexity  of  its  forms, 
and  the  diversity  of  its  habits: 

I. — The  gill-inhabiting  type,  forming  galls  on  the  leaves, 
and  presenting: 


WINE-MAKING    IN  CALIFORNIA.  61 

a.  The  ordinary  egg  with  which  the  gall  is  crowded. 

b.  The  ordinary  larva. 

c.  The  swollen,  parthenogti.  ^tic  mother,  without  tubercles. 
II. — The  root-inhabiting  type,  forming  knots  on  the  roots, 

and  presenting: 

aa.  The  ordinary  egg,  differing  in  nothing  from  a,  except 
in  its  slightly  larger  average  size. 

bb.  The  ordinary  larva,  also  differing  in  no  respect  from  b. 

d.  The  parthenogenetic,  wingless  mother,   the  analogue  of 
ft  but  covered  with  tubercles. 

e.  The  more  oval  form,  destined  to  become  winged. 
/,   The  pupa,  presenting  two  different  appearances. 

g.  The  winged,  parthenogenetic  female,  also  presenting  two 
different  appearances. 

//.  The  sexual  egg  or  sac  deposited  by  g,  being  of  two  sizes, 
and  giving  birth  to  the  true  males  and  females. 

/'.   The  male. 

j.  The  true  female. 

k.   The  solitary  impregnated  egg  deposited  by/. 

bbb.  The  larva  hatched  from  k,  which,  so  far  as  is  known, 
differs  not  from  the  ordinary  larva,  except  in  its  greater  pro- 
lificacy. , 

/.  The  hibernating  larva,  which  differs  only  from  £in  being 
rougher  and  darker. 

Forms  observed  in  California. — In  the  course  of  our  work 
we  have  met  all  the  forms  thus  far  known  in  the  gall-inhabit- 
ing type;  in  the  root-inhabiting  type  nearly  all  of  the  active 
forms  represented  in  the  table  have  been  observed.  They 
have  been  developed  up  to  the  production  of  what  we  have 
called  the  true  sexual  individuals,  or,  as  designated  in  the 
table,  the  true  male  and  female.  The  winged  females  which 
developed  upon  the  roots  and  were  caught  in  the  trap,  laid 
the  sexual  eggs,  but  none  of  them  produced  the  individuals 
which  would  naturally  have  followed.  No  reason  can  be 


02  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

given  for  the  failure,  more  than  the  suggestion  that  the  con- 
ditions may  not  be  favorable  in  a  glass  vessel  for  the  produc- 
tion of  the  form  whose  natural  home  is  upon  the  leaves  or 
stock.  There  is,  also,  a  possibility  that  these  eggs  may  not 
hatch  even  when  under  favorable  conditions  in  this  district; 
for  the  winged  insect  has  been  repeatedly  seen  upon  the  stock 
and  leaves  in  a  perfectly  quiet  condition,  but  no  eggs  have 
ever  been  found  with  them.  In  fact,  no  eggs  of  any  kind  have 
ever  been  found  upon  the  upper  part  of  the  vine.  When  the 
insects  are  confined  in  a  vessel  the  eggs  are  soon  laid. 

Winter  Egg. — The  solitary  egg,  commonly  called  the  win- 
ter egg  has  also  not  been  found,  although  it  has  been  the  ob- 
ject of  diligent  search  at  all  times.  It  is  to  this  form  that 
much  attention  is  being  directed  in  European  countries,  as 
its  extinction  offers  a  possible  means  of  checking  the  ravages 
of  this  pest.  It  is  also  supposed  that  a  close  relation  exists 
between  this  egg  and  the  gall-type.  If  such  a  relation  does 
exist  we  should  have  found  this  form  later  in  the  summer  up- 
on the  vines  whicri  bore  the  gall  last  year.  A  careful  search 
did  not  reveal  it  last  winter. 

Probable  Underground  Development  in  place  of  the  Winged 
Form. — The  larvae  from  the  winter  egg,  of  course,  we  have 
not  met  as  a  product  from  the  natural  course  of  development 
through  the  winged  form,  but  their  appearance  must  have 
escaped  our  notice  through  the  other  parallel  line  of  develop- 
ment which  is  accomplished  entirely  underground,  and  which 
is  described  as  differing  only  in  its  possible  greater  prolificacy 
from  the  ordinary  root  louse. 

This  line  of  production  may  have  been  that  from  which 
come  the  insects  noted  in  a  previous  report  (1882).  Their 
peculiar  appearance  at  the  time  led  to  doubts  as  to  what  stage 
of  development  they  really  represented.  It  was  even  conjec- 
tured that  they  were  the  sexual  individuals. 


XJNIVEESIT'X 

\YINE-MAKING  IN   CJFr\;  63 


Professor  Riley  has  omitted  to  mention  in  the  table  this 
supposed  underground  male  and  female  spoken  of  by  M.  Bal- 
biani,  which  does  not  pass  through  the  winged  state.  Accord- 
ing to  this  belief,  a  form  similar  to  that  produced  by  the 
winged  insects  may  be  developed  on  the  roots  and  pass  along 
the  main  trunk  to  the  upper  part  of  the  vines  and  deposit  eggs 
in  positions  similar  to  those  selected  by  the  winged  form. 
This  peculiar  phase  of  development  would  assist  in  explaining 
some  of  the  peculiarities  regarding  the  continued  prolificacy 
of  the  species  in  California  wherr  the  true  male  and  female 
appear  so  rarely,  if  at  all.  They  may  mingle  with  the  com- 
mon form  which  is  so  often  found  in  considerable  numbers 
two  or  more  inches  from  the  ground. 

There  is  generally  a  marked  distinction  between  the  ap- 
pearance of  the  young  larvae  which  are  to  develop  either  into 
the  winged  form,  or  are  to  become  mother  insects  upon  the 
roots.  The  latter  being  decidedly  dull  in  habit,  and  pear- 
shaped,  are  quite  easily  distinguishable;  the  former  are  not  so 
easily  recognized  until  the  wing-pads  begin  to  appear  but  by 
this  time  they  are  already  so  far  developed  that  they  become 
less  active,  and  in  bodily  form  answer  more  nearly  to  the  de- 
scription of  the  wingless  type.  But  then  there  has  been  no- 
ticed on  some-  of  our  specimens  among  these  larvae,  another 
form,  which  in  activity  and  outward  appearance  closely  re- 
sembles the  undeveloped  winged  insect.  It  is  of  a  very  bright 
color,  apparently  smooth,  and  seems  to  separate  from  the  re- 
mainder of  the  generation  as  soon  as  it  is  capable  of  moving. 
It  is  in  fact  never  found  in  clusters,  and  mostly  upon  portions 
of  the  roots  which  do  not  show  signs  of  having  been  attacked. 
These  insects  seem  to  be  the  explorers  for  the  more  sturdy 
productive  ones  which  follow  them.  Their  peculiarities  place 
them  undoubtedly  upon  the  side  of  the  winged  form,  and  as 
there  is  presumed  to  exist  a  similar  line  of  development,  save 
the  formation  of  wings,  we  may  justly  conjecture  that  this  is 


64  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

the  form  corresponding  in  the  biological  series  to  the  winged 
form,  though  never  developing  wings. 

Hibernating  Forms. — The  hibernating  larva  is  the  final 
form  of  the  year's  development,  upon  which  the  future  multi- 
plication of  the  insect  is  dependent.  This,  and  the  winter 
eggs,  serves  to  carry  the  insect  through  the  winter.  It  seems, 
according  to  our  observations^  that  this  special  precaution  is 
not  necessary,  and  is  therefore  not  apparent  in  the  California 
climate.  Our  winters  are  so  mild  that  merely  a  cessation  of 
work  is  noticeable,  and  not  an  extermination  of  the  common 
forms.  The  young  larva  of  the  common  egg-laying  insect 
acts  as  hibernants  without  any  apparent  special  prepara- 
tion, and  it  seems  to  brave  our  winter  without  any  trouble. 
The  mother  insect  can  also  be  found,  although  with  difficulty. 
The  larvae  themselves,  in  some  cases,  seem  to  have  assumed 
some  of  the  qualities  of  the  true  hibernants,  for  they  are  strong, 
and  usually  darker  in  color,  often  almost  black. 

In  connection  with  the  habits  of  the  phylloxera  during  hi- 
bernation, an  instructive  sample  of  infested  root  was  preserved 
this  year,  in  an  open  vessel,  filled  with  moist  earth.  The  roo 
was  protected  from  the  earth  and  placed  so  that  it  could  be 
watched  through  the  sides  of  the  vessel  without  being  disturbed. 
Scarcely  any  change  has  been  noticed  since  October  fifteenth, 
when^the  specimen  was  prepared.  Although  the  conditions 
have  been  quite  similar  to  that  of  ordinary  vine  growth,  ex- 
cept somewhat  drier,  there  has  Deen  no  movement  to  other 
parts  of  the  root  corresponding  to  the  supposed  movement  of 
the  phylloxera  to  lower  roots  when  winter  comes  on.  The  in- 
sects have  become  somewhat  darker,  well  developed  young 
larvae,  with  no  appearance  of  the  adult  larvae  form.  Up  to 
February,  1886,  there  has  been  no  appearance  of  reviving  or 
moving  about,  still  the  extremities  of  the  insect  are  extended 
and  can  be  plainly  seen  as  in  their  natural  condition  in  sum- 
mer. It  is  to  be  hoped  that  interesting  facts  may  be  gathered 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  65 

regarding  moulting,  and  change  of  form,  when  they  revive 
later  in  the  spring. 

In  previous  cases,  where  no  soil  was  used  and  the  tempera- 
ture of  the  laboratory  influenced  them,  eggs  have  been  pro- 
duced in  mid-winter,  and  production  continued  until  the  root 
had  decayed. 

The  soil  of  the  above  sample  was  moistened  in  December, 
and  a  good  supply  of  grass  roots  and  shoots  started,  but  have 
since  dried  up. 

It  has  never  before  been  shown  that  the  winter  habits  in 
California  differed  in  the  least  from  eastern  countries.  The 
winter  of  1884-85  has  shown  that  California  climate  is  spe- 
ially  favorable  to  the  life  of  the  phylloxera.  A  period  of 
three  months  will  almost  include  the  total  time  of  inactivity, 
for  we  find  active  insects  on  the  last  of  November,  and  newly- 
laid  eggs  on  the  first  of  March.  . 

Moulting  of  Hibernants.—\t  is  usually  supposed  that  a 
•certain  number  of  moultings  is  necessary  before  the  hiber- 
nants  assume  the  mother  state.  This,  I  think,  is  only  par- 
tially true  here,  and  applies,  if  at  all,  to  the  youngest  insects 
which  pass  as  hibernants,  and  which  were  not  fully  developed 
when  winter  came  on. 

Numerous  specimens  have  been  carefully  watched  during 
the  proper  period,  and  no  movement  whatever  was  noticed 
until  the  insect  began  laying  eggs.  It  was  further  observed 
that  the  abundance  of  young  larvae  found  at  the  close  of  the 
season  in  November  were  in  about  the  same  position,  and  ap- 
parently not  changed  in  the  spring  when  egg-laying  began. 

Sterile  Winged  Form. — The  table  speaks  of  two  different 
appearances  of  the  pupa  and  winged  form.  Undoubtedly 
this  means  the  fertile  and  sterile  kinds;  the  former  alone  has 
been  produced  during  our  experiments,  although  it  was 
through  the  latter  that  the  winged  form  was  first  found  in 
California.  These  were  observed  in  1879,  by  Dr.  Hyde  of 


66  GRAPH  CULTURE    AND 

Santa  Rosa,  and  were  identified  by  Professor  Hilgard  to  be 
of  the  infertile  variety.  These  are  the  only  individuals  of  the 
sterile  variety  found  thus  tar,  and  they  came  from  rather  large- 
sized  woody  roots,  such  as  are  usually  found  near  the  sur- 
face in  ordinary  California  summers.  May  we  not  reasonably 
conjecture  that  the  unusual  summer  rains  of  1884,  causing  arc 
unusual  abundance  of  white  surface  roots,  have  also  been  in- 
strumental in  developing  exceptionally  the  normal  fertile 
winged  form  ? 

Mode  of  attack  on  Different  Vines.  —  There  is  one  point 
worthy  of  note  as  throwing  some  light  upon  the  resisting  power 
of  vines;  it  is  the  manner  of  the  insects'  attack.  In  the  com- 
mon vinifera  even,  they  show  preference  for  particular  spots 
on  the  roots,  selecting  those  places  where  the  bark  is  softest,, 
usually  near  a  crack.  From  this  they  extend  upward  and 
downward  along  the  line  where  the  tissue  is  continuous  from 
that  spot;  and  scarcely  ever  do  we  find  them  working  at  right 
angles  from  this  line.  When  the  sap  begins  to  ooze  out  and 
rotting  sets  in,  they  precede  it  closely,  always  leaving  a  num- 
ber of  insects  to  continue  the  destruction  until  the  spot  be- 
comes completely  rotted  and  gives  out  no  more  sap.  Large 
numbers  of  insects  will  often  be  found  feeding  upon  such 
spots,  apparently  reluctant  to  leave  them  as  long  as  any  sus- 
tenance can  be  derived  therefrom.  So  closely  is  this  mode 
of  working  followed,  that  on  many  old  Mission  vines  they 
will  be  found  only  on  a  single  spot,  while  the  remainder  of  the 
root  is  free  from  them.  A  root  covered  with  a  fuzzy  bark  is 
noticeably  objectionable  to  them,  a  harder  one  with  cracked 
or  loosened  bark  is  preferred. 

U-pon  a  thoroughly  resistant  stock  the  insects  act  quite  dif- 
ferently. They  are  usually  scattered  about,  apparently  at  a 
loss  to  know  just  where  to  begin  operations.  Their  first 
piercings  are  made,  and  instead  of  a  .deep  rotting  which  com- 
pletely kills  the  bark  to  the  woody  tissue,  a  slight,  thin  black- 


WINE-MAKING    IN   CALIFORNIA.  67 

ening  of  the  bark  takes  place,  which  does  not  extend  further, 
and,  if  made  on  the  finer  rootlets,  will  often  peel  off,  leaving 
the  root  perfectly  smooth. 

I  abstain  purposely  from  description  of  any  chemical  reme- 
dies, because  I  believe  them  too  costly,  and  at  the  same  time 
not  effectual  enough.  They  give  us  no  guarantee,  even  if 
they  could  be  so  thoroughly  applied  as  to  exterminate  all 
the  insects,  of  permanent  security;  as  they  may  at  any  time 
be  again  transmitted  to  the  same  vineyard,  making  continued 
applications  necessary,  generally  with  great  danger  to  the 
vines.  Only  in  cases  when  it  is  desirable  to  preserve  a  valu- 
able piece  of  vineyard  of  a  choice  variety,  it  may  be  advisable 
to  use  Dr.  Bauer's  Mercurial  remedy,  which  so  far  is  the  most 
promising,  least  dangerous,  and  cheapest  of  all  that  have  been 
tried.  Those  who  wisli  to  try  this,  can  find  it  fully  described 
in  Bulletins  18  and  48,  which  can  be  had  from  the  State  Uni- 
versity on  application. 


CHAPTER    VII. 

RESISTANT  VINES. 

I  have  always  been  fully  convinced,  since  I  first  studied 
the  habits  of  the  insect  that  in  these  we.  possess  the  only 
feasible  and  practical  means  of  preventing  and  counteracting 
the  ravages  of  the  phylloxera.  Insecticides,  of  whatever  kind 
and  description,  are  too  costly  in  their  application,  and  have 
to  be  renewed  too  often,  to  ever  become  practically  applica- 
ble  here  or  even  in  Europe.  The  lowest  cost  of  their  appli- 
cation of  which  I  have  seen  an  estimate,  is  about  $30  per 


68  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

acre,  more  than  the  general  annual  cost  of  cultivation,  and 
this  is  only  a  temporary  remedy,  which  must  be  renewed 
every  few  years,  to  be  of  use  at  all.  Besides,  great  care  must 
be  exercised  in  their  application,  for  an  over-dose  will  kill  or 
fatally  injure  the  vines.  The  pest  is  liable  to  reappear  at  any 
time,  and  thus  it  needs  constant  doctoring  with  costly  reme- 
dies, to  keep  the  patient  even  in  a  state  between  life  and 
death.  But  when  a  vineyard  is  -once  established  on  Ameri- 
can roots,  of  a  variety  suited  to  its  locality,  I  believe  it  to  be 
fully  efficacious,  and  European  experience,  as  well  as  our 
own  here  proves  it  to  be  so.  Any  one  who  has  seen  the  mag- 
nificent and  flourishing  vineyard  of  Messrs.  Dresel  and  Gund- 
lach,  in  Sonoma  County,  re-established  on  American  roots, 
when  the  vinifera  had  been  totally  destroyed  on  the  same  soil,, 
and  the  ground  was  full  of  the  insect,  cannot  help  to  believe 
them  entirely  and  fully  resistant.  During  the  five  years  that 
I  had  charge  of  the  Talcoa  vineyards,  near  Napa,  where  the 
insect  is  gradually  destroying  the  old  vineyard  of  70  acres, 
where  I  planted  over  300  acres  with  American  vines  of  differ- 
ent species,  and  replanted  fifteen  acres  with  American  vines, 
which  had  been  destroyed  by  the  phylloxera;  I  could  fully 
convince  myself.  These  vines,  mostly  wild  Riparia,  and  Riparia 
Varieties,  are  now  in  their  third  summer,  and  although  planted 
on  infested  soil,  and  ground  naturally  not  very  rich,  that  had 
been  impoverished  by  over  20  years  of  constant  bearing  of 
the  vinifera,  which  occupied  the  ground  before,  but  suc- 
cumbed to  the  insect.  The  most  striking  illustration  of  the  par- 
tial resistance  of  all  American  vines,  was  presented  by  some 
old  vines  of  Catawba,  Isabella  and  Clinton,  which  had  been 
mixed  in  among  the  Mission  vines  and  scattered  among 
them,  about  50  in  all,  over  perhaps  two  acres.  These  re- 
mained fresh  and  vigorous,  producing  fair  crops  and  good 
growth  every  year,  where  Mission  and  other  varieties  were 
utterly  destroyed. 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  69 

I  do  not  wish  to  be  understood,  however,  that  certain 
species  of  American  vines  should  succeed  everywhere  and  in 
all  soils.  This  would  not  be  natural,  and  can  hardly  be  ex- 
pected. We  have  instances  on  record  now,  with  even  our 
short  experience,  which  serve  to  show  that  we  must  again 
study  the  species  adapted  to  our  particular  soil  and  locality. 
The  Taylor  and  Elvira,  two  Riparia  varities,  succeed  well  at 
Dresels  and  Gundlach,  below  Sonoma,  while  at  Kohler's 
Vineyard  at  Glen  Ellen  they  do  not  succeed,  while  the 
Lenoir  grows  finely.,  and  produces  well;  and  the  Herbemont 
again  one  of  the  most  flourishing  and  vigorous  at  Gnndlachs 
and  Talcoa,  does  not  succeed  at  Kohler's,  only  ten  miles 
from  there.  So  far,  the  wild  Riparia,  the  Lenoir  and  Her- 
bemont have  given  the  most  general  satisfaction,  while  the 
Californica  seems  also  to  succeed  well  in  all  deep,  rich 
soils,  especially  in  adobe,  and  does  not  seem  to  flourish  in 
dry  soil  or  hard-pan.  The  same  may  be  said  in  France  and! 
Europe,  hence  the  conflicting  reports  from  there  about  the 
results  obtained  with  American  vines.  The  question  there  is 
now,  not  so  much  their  resistance,  of  which  nearly  all  seem 
to  be  convinced,  but  the  applicability  and  adaptability  of 
certain  varieties  to  certain  soils  and  locations.  The  follow- 
ing, taken  from  the  wine  and  spirit  news,  and  published  sev- 
eral years  ago,  may  serve  as  an  illustration  of  the  estimation 
in  which  they  are  held  there,  and  the  extent  to  which  they 
have  been  adopted  to  reinstate  their  failing  vineyards.  I 
have  the  pleasure  to  be  one  of  the  correspondents  of  Mdme 
la  Duchess  de  Khz  James  and  gladly  add  my  testimony  to 
that  of  the  gentleman  referred  to,  as  to  her  enthusiasm  and 
zeal,  and  the  incalculable  benefits  which  her  able  writings 
and  splendid  example  have  conferred  upon  our  beloved  in- 
dustry. 

Under  the   heading  "Measures  for  Combatting  the  Phyl- 
loxera," a  pamphlet  has  recently  been  published  at  Bordeaux, 


70  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

giving  an  account  of  a  visit  paid  by  M.  A.  Lalande,  the 
deputy  for  the  Gironde,  in  company  with  M.  M.  Ed.  Law- 
ton  and  T.  and  P.  Skawinski,  to  the  districts  of  the  Herault 
and  the  Gard,  for  the  purpose  of  studying  the  means  em- 
ployed in  those  departments  with  a  view  to  the  destruction  of 
the  phylloxera,  or  where  necessary  reconstituting  the  vineyards 
already  destroyed.  This  journey,  which  extended  over  six 
days,  was  undertaken  more  especially  in  the  interests  of  the 
vine-growers  of  the  great  and  important  district  of  the  Medoc, 
the  centre  of  the  richest  vine  districts  of  France. 

Up  to  the  present  time  the  ravages  of  the  phylloxera,  al- 
though considerable,  have  not  by  any  means  been  so  serious 
in  the  Medoc  as  in  some  of  the  other  wine-producing  districts 
of  France.  In  t)ie  department  of  the  Gard,  for  instance,  it 
is  stated  that  out  of  255,000  acres  of  vines,  250,000  have 
been  destroyed  ;  while  in  the  Herault,  which  produced  at 
one  time  330,000,000  gallons  of  wine,  and  the  average  an- 
nual production  of  which  was  220,000,000  gallons,  the  quan- 
tity for  1 88 1  fell  to  77,000,000  gallons  only.  From  these 
figures  it  will  be  readily  seen  that  the  field  for  inquiry  offered 
by  these  two  departments  was  an  extensive  one,  and  the  in- 
formation to  be  obtained  should  be  of  extreme  value  as  a 
guide  to  other  districts,  and  all  the  more  so,  as  energetic 
measures  have  been  already  adopted  by  the  vine-growers  of 
the  south,  with  a  view,  if  not  to  save,  at  least  to  renew  the 
vines  which  constitute  for  them  the  chief  wealth  of  their 
districts. 

Before  proceeding  further,  we  may  say  that  the  informa- 
tion and  evidence  obtained  by  M.  Lalande  and  his  fellow- 
travellers  throws  a  somewhat  new  light  upon  the  question  of 
the  phylloxera,  and  seems  to  show  that,  serious  as  the  damage 
caused  by  this  insect  has  been,  and  still  continues  to  be,  the 
case  is  not  altogether  a  hopeless  one.  Of  various  remedies, 
some  thousands  in  number,  suggested  for  combatting  the 


WINK-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  71 

phylloxera,  three  only  at  the  present  time  hold  an  important 
position.  The  credit  of  having  suggested  one  of  these,  that 
of  replanting  by  the  American  vines,  is  assigned  to  M.  Laliman, 
and  that  gentleman  shares  with  Baron  Therinrd,  M.  Dumas; 
and  M.  Fancon,  the  honor  of  having  indicated  to  the  French 
vine-growers  the  three  means  capable,  according  to  situation 
and  other  circumstances,  of  resisting  the  terrible  plague 
which  at  one  time  threatened  to  annihilate  the  vineyards  of 
France  —  that  is  to  say,  the  employment  of  insecticides,-  sub- 
mersion, and  American  vines. 

Of  the  first  remedy  we  hear  but  few  particulars  during  the 
journey  undertaken  by  M.  Lalande  ;  of  the  second  no  notice 
is  taken  at  all  ;  while,  on  the  other  hand,  of  the  results  ob- 
tained by  means  of  the  third,  most  striking  evidence  is  given, 
and,  indeed,  it  is  apparent  that  it  is  to  the  last  remedy  — 
that  of  replanting  with  American  vines  — that  M.  Lalande 
and  his  fellow-travellers  attach  the  greatest  importance. 

On  the  first  day  of  their  excursion  the  chief  interest  seems 
to  have  been  attracted  to  some  vineyards  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  Beziers,  where  an  extent  of  more  than  5000  acres  of 
vines  had  been  preserved  for  some  years  past  by  means  of 
sulphate  of  carbon,  accompanied  each  year  by  manuring  over 
about  a  third  of  the  extent  of  the  lands  in  question.  As  a 
result  of  this  treatment,  it  is  stated  that  the  vegetation  was 
good  and  normal,  although  there  were  some  points  where 
the  sulphate  of  carbon  appeared  not  to  have  acted  with  the 
same  efficiency  and  success  as  elsewhere.  The  failure  in 
these  cases,  however,  was  attributed  to  the  extreme  hu- 
midity, which  had  paralyzed  the  action  of  the  sulphate,  a 
failure  which,  it  is  hoped,  may  be  remedied  in  future  by 
means  of  drainage. 

Proceeding  on  the  second  day  to  the  neighborhood  of 
Montpelier,  a  visit  was  there  paid  to  an  estate  on  which  all 
the  French  vines  had  been  destroyed  some  time  previously, 


72  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

and  which  now  presented  the  interesting  appearance  of  an 
entire  reconstitution  of  the  vineyard  on  a  grand  scale,  by 
means  of  American  vines  planted  ten  years  previously,  and 
subsequently  grafted  with  the  French  vines,  which  latter  have 
since  offered  a  perfect  resistance  to  the  attacks  of  the 
phylloxera. 

In  the  ssme  district  another  property  was  found  where  the 
vines,  which  were  of  a  French  species,  had  been  grafted 
either  on  the  Lenoir,  Clinton,  Taylor,  or  Riparia,  and  were 
in  a  splendid  state  of  vegetation,  with  an  abundant  appear- 
ance of  fruit. 

Similar  accounts  are  given  as  to  a  number  of  other  proper- 
ties visited  on  this  and  the  succeeding  days,  as  to  which  M. 
Lalande  remarks  :  "  It  does  not  appear  necessary  to  give  a 
detailed  account  of  all  we  have  been  able  to  observe.  We 
limit  ourselves,  therefore,  to  remarking  that,  after  having 
seen  numerous  specimens  of  all  varieties  of  American  vines 
introduced  into  France,  we  have  especially  noticed  some 
Lenoir  and  Herbemont  vines  as  presenting  a  magnificent 
appearance,  with  a  fair  quantity  of  fruit,  although,  it  should 
be  stated,  much  less  so  than  was  to  be  found  where  French 
vines  had  been  grafted  on  American  stocks."  As  a  proof  of 
this  fact,  some  particulars  are  given  of  a  property  in  the 
neighborhood  of  Montpelier  where  all  the  French  vines  had 
been  destroyed  by  the  phylloxera.  Here  some  200  acres 
had  been  replanted  a  few  years  previously  with  the  American 
vines  called  Riparia,  and  these  had  been  subsequently 
grafted  with  French  vines.  The  results  in  this  case  were 
splendid,  the  vegetation  being  very  fine,  and  the  quantity  of 
fruit  enormous,  in  fact,  all  the  vines  were  loaded  with  mag- 
nificent grapes,  and  these  extremely  well  formed,  so  much  so 
that  the  production  had  increased  by  half  as  much  again  per 
acre  on  the  original  yield. 

Very  much  the  same  results  wrere  observed  on  the  last  day 


WINE-MAKING   IN   CALIFORNIA.  73 

of  the  journey,  when  visiting  the  extensive  vineyards  of  the 
Duchess  Fitzjames.  This  lady  has  given  much  attention  to 
the  question  of  the  advantages  to  be  derived  from  replanting 
with  American  vines,  and  an  article  contributed  by  her  some 
twelve  months  to  the  Reveu  des  deux  Mondes  on  the  subject 
of  American  vines  may  be  said  to  have  contained,  at  that 
time,  all  the  information  to  be  obtained  in  regard  to  the 
same.  Speaking  of  this  property  M.  Lalande  says:  "We 
have  much  admired  here  the  American  vines  —  principally 
the  Lenoir  —  cultivated  with  a  view  to  direct  production,  as 
also  the  American  vines  grafted  with  French  varieties.  We 
have,  however,  still  more  admired,  if  this  was  possible,  the 
energy  and  intelligence  displayed  by  the  Duchess  Fitzjames 
in  the  reconstitution  of  her  vineyards.  Some  idea  may  be 
formed  of  this  when  we  state  that  she  has  already  success- 
fully replanted  1,275  acres  of  vines,  and  is  making  arrange- 
ments for  increasing  this  replanting  to  the  extent  of  nearly 
2,000  acres,  thereby  inspiring  the  conviction  that  the  mag- 
nificent vineyards  of  this  district  —  now  almost  entirely 
destroyed  —  will  be  able  gradually  to  be  reconstituted  by 
means  of  American  vines. 

One  other  curious  piece  of  information  resulted  from  this 
visit.  It  appears  that,  it  having  been  found  that  vines 
planted  in  sandy  soils  resisted  better  the  attacks  of  phyl- 
loxera, these  lands  which  formerly  had  been  neglected,  and 
were  worth  scarcely  thirty-two  shillings  per  acre,  have  now, 
after  having  been  planted  with  vines,  increased  in  value  to 
nearly  one  hundred  times  that  amount.  Thus  in  the  sandy 
soil  of  Aigues-Mortes  the  American  vines  which  have  been 
there  planted  presented  a  magnificent  appearance  with  an 
abundant  show  of  fruit. 

From  all  the  information  obtained  during  their  visit,  M. 
Lalande  and  his  fellow-travellers  state,  as  the  result  of  their 
experience,  that  they  had  found  in  the  departments  of  the 


74  GRAPE  CULTURE   AN1> 

Herault  and  the  Card  the  preference  was  given  by  the  vine 
growers  almost  exclusively  to  two  kinds  of  American  vines  — 
the  Lenoir  and  the  Riparia,  although  some  other  varieties, 
such  as  the  Clinton,  the  Solonis,  the  York-Madeira  and  the 
Rupestris  are  considered  excellent  importations  for  grafting 
with  French  vines. 

Too  much  praise  cannot  be  beslowed  upon  M.  Lalande 
and  those  associated  with  him  in  this  journey,  undertaken  as 
it  was  entirely  in  the  interests  of  the  French  vine  growers; 
and  if,  as  appears  more  than  likely,  as  the  result  of  their 
visit,  the  practice  should  become  general  throughout  France 
of  replanting  with  American  vines  as  a  means  of  resisting  the 
phylloxera,  the  destruction  of  the  French  vineyards,  which 
at  one  time  appeared  more  than  possible,  may,  it  now  seems 
more  than  probable,  be  averted. —  Wine  and  Spirit  News. 

This  would  seem  to  be  conclusive  testimony  enough  to 
convince  even  the  most  skeptical,  that  vineyards  can  be  rein- 
stated with  American  vines. 

I  will  now  make  a  comparison  of  the  different  classes  and 
species,  with  their  comparative  value  and  applicability  here, 
us  it  appears  to  me  after  six  years  of  close  study  and  observa- 
tion in  this  State.  I  shall  take  them  in  the  order  as  they 
seem  to  me  the  most  valuable. 

Vitis  &stivalis — Summer  Grape.  I  take  this  first,  because 
I  consider  it  perhaps,  the  most  important,  at  least  some  of- 
its  varieties;  and  shall  speak  mainly  of  those  which  I  think 
most  valuable,  and  which  have  already  gained  somewhat  of  a 
reputation  as  direct  producers,  while  they  also  make  excel- 
lent stocks  for  grafting.  I  have  already  spoken  of  their  lead- 
ing characteristics  in  classification  of  grapes.  They  make  very 
strong  roots,  always  at  the  lower  joint,  and  are  therefore  emi- 
nently adapted  to  dry,  and  even  stony  hillsides,  although  they 
also  flourish  in  rich,  deep  land,  but  are  averse  to  cold,  wet, 
hard-pan  soil,  as  they  do  not  like  wet  feet.  But  such  soil  is  not 


WINE-MAKING  IN    CALIFORNIA.  75 

fit  for  grapes  any  way,  and  will  never  make  first-class  wine, 
therefore  should  be  avoided.  They  will  stand  the  severest 
droughts  and  always  look  fresh  and  green.  Their  thick  and 
persistent  foliage  affords  excellent  protection  to  the  fruit,  and 
withstands,  better  than  all  others,  the  attacks  of  the  white 
thrip  and  other  insects.  They  do  not  sunscald,  and  seldom 
are  attacked  by  mildew. 

The  Herbemont  is  perhaps  the  most  valuable;  a  strong 
grower,  very  productive  and  healthy.  Synonyms,  Herbemonts 
Madeira,  Warren,  Warrenton.  It  was  first  cultivated  by  Mr. 
Neal,  a  farmer  in  Warren  Co.,  Georgia,  who  found  the  vine 
in  the  woods,  near  his  residence,  as  early  as  the  year  1800, 
It  was  afterwards  cultivated  by  Mr.  Nicholas  Herbemont,  a 
Frenchman,  at  Columbia,  and  distributed  under  its  present 
name.  He  made  wine  of  it  for  many  years,  which  was 
justly  admired.  Mr.  Longworth  introduced  it  at  Cincinnati,. 
Ohio,  and  Mr.  Charles  G.  Teubner  at  Hermann,  Mo.,  1847, 
where  I  became  familiar  with  it  in  1852,  and  have  cultivated 
it  in  Missouri  for  twenty-five  years.  With  winter  protection 
it  seldom  failed  to  produce  a  fine  crop  there,  and  I  have  seen  it 
produce  35  Ibs.  to  the  vine,  or  2000  gallons  to  the  acre.  This 
was  with  long  pruning  on  trellis,  and  the  crop  was  sold  to  the 
wine  makers  at  7  cents  per  pound.  It  makes  a  very  sprightly 
white  wine,  if  pressed  lightly,  immediately  after  being 
crushed;  and  the  remainder,  if  thrown  into  the  fermenting 
vat,  and  fermented  from  four  to  six  days,  will  make  a  good 
claret.  The  Herbemont  has  not  been  tried  so  extensively  iti 
this  State,  on  account  of  the  prevailing  rage  for  red  wine,  as 
it  lacks  in  color,  but  all  the  samples  made  from  it  have  elicited 
high  praise  for  their  sprightliness,  easy  and  rapid  clarification, 
and  their  delicate  flavor.  The  vine  is  a  very  strong,  short- 
jointed  grower;  wood  gray,  leaves  deeply  lobed,  large  and 
thick,  light  green  above,  grayish  below,  which  remain  on  the 
vines,  fresh  and  green,  until  December.  Bunch  compact, 


76  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND  • 

shouldered,  larger  and  heavier  than  any  of  its  class;  berry 
small,  round,  black  with  blue  bloom,  very  juicy  and  sprightly, 
without  pulp,  well  called  by  Downing,  "bags  of  wine,"  skin 
thin.  A  very  early  and  heavy  bearer,  has  with  long  pruning 
produced  50  Ibs.  to  the  vine  when  four  years  old.  An  ex- 
cellent stock  for  grafting,  as  it  is  an  immense  grower,  and  all  the 
grafts  of  Vinifera  varieties  take  well  on  it,  but  almost  too  good 
of  itself  to  graft.  Who  ever  plants  it  has  the  choice  of  keep- 
ing it  for  its  own  fruit,  or  gnifting  it.  I  should  prefer  the 
first.  It  propagates  much  more  readily  from  cuttings  grown 
in  this  State  than  in  Missouri,  and  I  have  had  from  50  to  75 
per  cent,  to  grow  in  nursery.  The  finest  piece  of  Vinifera 
grafts  Mr.  Gundlach  has  are  on  Herbemont  roots. 

Perhaps  the  most  valuable  for  direct  production  of  the 
yEstivalis  class  is  the  Rulander  or  St.  Genevieve.  This  is  not 
the  German  grape  of  that  name,  but  a  true  ^Estivalis,  first 
extensively  cultivated  by  Dr.  Koch,  of  Golconda,  111.,  who 
obtained  it  from  St.  Genevieve,  Mo.;  vine  a  short  jointed, 
stocky  grower,  wood  short  jointed,  blueish  brown;  leaf  heart 
shaped,  not  lobed;  bunch  small,  shouldered,  compact;  berry 
small,  round,  brownish  black,  covered  with  blue  bloom,  juicy, 
sweet  and  spicy.  Makes  a  very  fine  dark  red  wine  here,  resem- 
bling the  finest  Burgundy  types,  and  is  very  productive.  It  is 
well  adapted  to  spur  pruning,  on  account  of  its  short,  stocky 
growth,  and  as  it  is  easy  of  propagation,  will  be  valuable  for 
its  own  product,  as  well  as  a  grafting  stock.  The  must  is 
very  sweet  and  spicy,  coming  up  to  28  to  30°  Balling.  Pro- 
pagates easily  from  cuttings. 

The  Louisiana  is  very  similar  to  the  above,  in  growth  of 
vine,  leaf  and  fruit,  but  differs  in  making  a  lighter  colored 
wine,  resembling  the  delicate,  high  flavored  and  heavy  hocks, 
It  is  as  yet  but  little  tried  in  this  State,  and  only  in  my  hands, 
I  shall  report  fully  on  it  in  due  time.  So  far,  it  is  very 
promising. 


WINK-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  77 

Perhaps  the  best  known  of  this  class  is  the  Lenoir.  Syno- 
nyms, Bkck  Spanish,  Jack  Grape,  Jaquez,  Devereaux.  I 
sent  it  to  this  State,  to  Mr.  H.  W.  Crable,  of  Oakville,  Napa 
Co.,  in  1876,  as  he  was  desirous  of  obtaining  a  grape  of  very 
deep  color,  and  abundance  of  tannin;  and  as  I  had  tried  it  on 
a  small  scale  in  Missouri,  I  thought  it  would  meet  this  want. 
It  originated  in  South  Carolina  or  Mississippi,  and  was  first 
disseminated  by  a  gentleman  named  Lenoir,  hence  the  name, 
who  grows  it  somewhat  extensively  in  South  Carolina,  and 
made  wine  from  it  forty  years  ago,  which  was  much  admired. 
It  is  cultivated  extensively  in  Texas,  under  the  name  of  Black 
Spanish.  It  was  introduced  into  France  as  early  as  1864, 
where  it  is  now  perhaps  more  cultivated  and  its  wine  has  a 
higher  commercial  value  than  that  of  any  other  American 
grape,  on  account  of  its  intense  color,  and  as  its  resistance  to 
phylloxera  has  been  fully  demonstrated.  It  is  a  beautiful 
grower,  with  large,  dark  green,  deeply  lobed -leaves;  points  of 
the  young  shoots  reddish,  wood  brown,  long  jointed  for  its 
class.  Bunch  long,  shouldered,  loose;  berry  small,  black, 
with  blue  bloom,  juicy,  no  pulp,  juice  deep  violet  red.  It  has 
such  a  superabundance  of  color  that  one  fifth  of  it  will  give 
the  desired  color  to  any  light  colored  Zinfandel,  and  as  it  also 
has  an  abundance  of  tannin,  it  is  likely  to  be  a  very  valuable 
wine  for  blending,  though  I  must  say  I  do  not  admire  it  by 
itself  as  much  here  as  I  did  in  Missouri.  It  seems  to  me  to 
be  coarse  and  harsh.  It  is  a  very  strong  grower,  and  needs 
a  six  foot  stake  with  abundance  of  spurs,  to  make  it  produce 
full  crops,  Specific  gravity  of  must  28°  Balling. 

Cunningham.  Synonyms,  Long.  This  is  perhaps  the  most 
valuable  of  the  whole  class  as  a  stock  for  grafting;  as  it  is  an 
immense  grower,  takes  the  graft  well,  and  propogates  readily 
from  cuttings.  Though  it  bears  very  abundantly,  the  berries 
are  small  and  dry,  with  a  superabundance  of  acid,  though  also 
rich  in  sacharine.  It  originated  with  Mr.  Jacob  Cunningham, 


78  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

Prince  Edward  Co.,  Va.,  about  the  year  1812.  I  received 
it  from  Virginia  at  Hermann,  Mo.,  as  early  as  1852,  and 
made  some  very  fine  wine  of  it  in  good  seasons,  though  it  sel- 
dom ripened  its  wood  well,  and  proved  too  tender  for  that 
severe  climate.  Here  it  seems  in  its  proper  latitude,  as  it  al- 
ways ripens  its  wood.  Vine,  the  strongest  grower  I  know  ; 
wood,  short  jointed,  blueish-red;  bunch  small,  compact, 
shouldered;  berry  small,  purplish-lilac,  not  very  juicy,  but 
high  flavored  and  spicy.  Leaf,  heart  shaped,  not  lobed,  light 
green. above,  greenish  white  below,  young  shoots  downy.  I 
am  inclined  to  believe  it  the  most  valuable  stock  we  have  for 
grafting,  though  not  willing  to  recommend  it  as  a  direct  pro- 
ducer. 

These  varieties  all  belong  to  the  so  called  Southern  divis- 
ion of  the  /Estivalis  class.  The  Northern  division,  to  which 
the  Norton's  Virginia  and  Cynthiana  belong,  have  not,  so  far, 
proved  a  success  here,  though  producing  fine  red  wines  in 
Missouri  and  Virginia.  The  climate  seems  to  be  too  dry  for 
them,  the  berries  and  bunches  are  very  small  and  dry,  and 
the  leaves  do  not  seem  to  be  so  healthy.  I  hardly  think  they 
will  be  worthy  of  cultivation  here,  especially  as  the  wine  they 
produce  is  not  near  so  good  as  in  Missouri  and  Virginia. 

Perhaps  the  easiest  and  cheapest  plan  to  grow  the  /Estivalis 
for  stocks  would  be  to  sow  their  seeds.  In  connection  with 
this  I  will  say  that  the  experiments  I  have  made  show  a  de- 
cided tendency  in  the  case  of  the  Lenoir  to  go  back  to  the 
original  type,  the  plants  not  showing  as  much  vigor  as  could 
be  expected  from  the  parent  stock.  In  the  Herbemont  seed- 
lings, however,  there  seems  to  be  a  great  tendency  to  sport, 
/.  e.  produce  manifold  varieties,  but  most  of  them  showing 
great  vigor  and  fine  growth,  while  their  root  system  was  per- 
fect; a  large  tap  root,  going  straight  down,  with  but  few  di- 
verging roots,  and  these  with  the  same  downward  tendency. 


WINK-MAKING   IX    CALIFORNIA.  79 

The  seedlings  made  a  very  large  growth  the  first  season,  and 
gave  promise  of  being  very  fine  grafting  stock. 

Vitis  Riparia.  Sand  or  River  grape.  Next  to  ^Kstivalis 
in  importance  as  a  grafting  stock,  I  would  place  this, 
especially  the  wild  Riparia,  as  it  seems  to  succeed  on 
a  diversity  of  soils,  propagates  readily  and  easily,  and 
takes  the  graft  readily.  Of  the  cultivated  varieties  there  is 
but  one,  the  Elvira,  which  is  equal,  if  not  superior,  to  the 
wild  Riparia  in  this  respect.  The  Taylor  does  not  seem  to 
take  the  graft  well,  nor  is  it  as  entirely  resistant  as  the  wild 
stock,  as  the  wounds  made  by  the  insect  on  its  roots,  do  not 
seem  to  heal  over  as  rapidly  as  co.uld  be  wished.  The  wild 
Riparia  has  the  advantages  of  easy  propagation,  adaptability 
to  location  and  soil,  and  uniting  well  with  the  graft.  There 
is  a  difference,  however,  in  the  varieties;  as  the  Green  Hun- 
garian, Marsanne,  Franken  Riesling,  Clairette  Blanche, 
Muscadelle  de  Bordelais,  Pedra  Ximenes  and  several  others, 
take  on  it  readily,  while  the  Sultana,  Crabbs  Burgundy, 
Gamay,  and  Chanche  Gris,  do  not  unite  so  readily  and  sure- 
ly. I  have  found  very  little  difference  in  cuttings  or  seed- 
lings, one  year  old  seedlings  will  make  about  as  strong  a 
growth,  if  transplanted  to  the  vineyard,  as  one  year  old  vines 
from  cuttings.  If  the  latter  are  chosen,  I  would  advise,  how- 
ever, before  planting  to  cut  out  all  the  lower  buds  on  the 
plant  with  a  sharp  knife,  leaving  only  only  those  around*  the 
crown  of  the  vine,  or  perhaps  one  below  it.  This  will  pre- 
vent suckering  from  below,  will  save  much  labor  and  distur- 
bance of  the  graft,  and  one  man  can  do  the  pruning  of  the 
vines  for  a  set  of  four  planters. 

Vitis  Calif ornica.     Our  native  wild  species  has  been  used  to 
a  greater  extent  as  a  grafting  stock,  perhaps,  than  any  other,  and 
it  is  certainlya  very  vigorous,  strong  grower,  with  a  root  system 
which  seems  to  go  down  into  the  soil   naturally.     It  has  a; 
very  soft,  fleshy  root,   however;  Fully  as  soft  as  the  Vinifera, 


80  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

and  one  which  the  insect,  therefore,  attacks  readily.  The 
wounds  seem  to  heal  up,  however,  and  the  strong  and  vigor- 
ous habit  of  the  vine  may  overcome  its  attacks.  But  it  is 
useless  to  attempt  growing  the  Californica  on  very  dry,  stony 
soils.  The  vine  evidently  does  not  feel  at  home  there,  nor  on 
hard  pan  alkaline  soils;  and  as  it  makes  but  a  very  feeble  growth 
there,  would  readily  succumb  to  the  attacks  of  the  insect. 
Deep  alluvial  soils,  and  rich  adobe  lands  seem  to  be  suited 
best  to  its  wants.  The  wisest  plan  would  be  to  choose  the 
^Estivalis  for  the  former  the  hard  pan  alkaline  soils,  are 
really  not  fit  for  any  vine,  and  had  better  be  left  severely 
alone  for  vineyard  planting.  As  the  subject  is  an  all  impor- 
tant one,  I  shall  take  the  liberty  of  quoting  largely,  at  the 
close  of  this  chapter,  from  the  publications  of  Prof.  E.  W. 
Hilgard,  of  the  State  University,  who  is  one  of  the  strongest 
advocates  of  the  Californica.  As  the  vine  does  not  propagate 
as  readily  from  cuttings  as  Riparia,  the  easiest  and  cheapest 
way  will  be  to  raise  seedlings,  which  make  good  plants  for  the 
vineyard  the  same  season. 

Vitis  Rupestris — Rock  or  sweet  grape.  As  this  is  at  home 
on  the  most  barren  and  rocky  hillsides  in  Missouri,  Arkansas, 
and  Texas  ;  it  would  seem  natural  to  suppose  that  it  was  best 
adapted  to  withstand  our  dry  summers,  and  to  succeed  on  the 
driest  soils.  This  seems  not  the  case,  however ;  and  its 
growth,  in  such  locations  has  not  been  superior  if  equal  to 
that  of  ./Estivalis  or  Riparia,  while  in  moist  rather  springy 
soil,  it  makes  a  very  heavy  growth.  It  does  not,  however 
take  the  graft  as  readily  as  these,  suckers  yet  more,  and  I  can 
see  no  reason  to  recommend  it  when  these  can  be  had.  If 
planted  it  will  be  very  important  to  cut  out  the  lower  buds 
on  the  cutting  or  plants,  as  mentioned  before  for  the  Riparia. 

Vitis  Arizonica. — The  wild  vine  of  Arizona  is  closely  re- 
lated to  this,  and  as  I  can  see  nothing  in  it  to  recommend,  in 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  81 

preference  to  the  foregoing,  and  it  does  not  seem  to  graft 
readily,  we  will  pass  it  by. 

Vitis  Labrusca — Northern  Fox  Grape.  This  propagates 
readily  from  cuttings;  but  as  it  roots  near  the  surface,  and  is 
not  entirely  resistant,  although  partially  so,  I  cannot  recom- 
mend it,  except  perhaps,  a  few  of  its  varieties  for  immediate 
bearing  and  market  grapes.  For  that  purpose  some  of  the 
earliest  varieties  may  be  valuable,  such  as  Delaware,  Early 
Victor,  Wilder  and  Agawam.  These  could  be  grown  on 
their  roots,  without  grafting. 

It  can  hardly  be  of  practical  value  to  enumerate  the  other 
classes,  and  I  will  only  say  in  conclusion,  that  I  can  see  no 
reason,  with  the  phylloxera  already  in  our  midst,  which  would 
induce  me  to  plant  vinifera,  when  I  can  have  resistant  vines 
as  cheap,  as  easy,  and  run  no  risk  with  them.  If  a  years 
time  is  lost  by  grafting,  the  grafts  grow  so  much  more  vigor- 
ously and  produce  so  much  more  heavily  than  on  their  own 
roots,  that  the  loss  of  time  and  expense  in  grafting  will  be 
more  than  made  up  in  a  few  years. 

The  following  extracts  from  the  University  report  by  Prof. 
Hilgard  and  others,  will  throw  additional  light  upon  this  im- 
portant topic.  I  only  wish  to  add  in  the  way  of  comment, 
that  it  did  not  take  more  than  two  seasons  after  planting  the 
Riparia,  either  one  year  old  plants  from  cuttings,  or  one  year 
old  seedlings,  even  in  the  unfavorable  soil  of  Talcoa,  to  make 
them  strong  enough  for  grafting.  Also  that  the  early  starting 
of  the  stock,  referred  to  in  the  notes,  did  not  seem  to  have 
any  influence  on  the  grafts,  which  did  not  start  earlier  than 
the  same  varieties  on  their  own  roots.  But  grafting  seems  to 
have  a  decided  influence  on  coulure,  as  the  grafts  set  and  per- 
fected their  fruit  much  better  than  the  same  varieties  on  their 
-own  roots.  Perhaps  the  partial  obstruction  to  the  flow  of  sap 
.at  the  junction  may  account  for  this,  as  grafted  trees  generally" 
bear  earlier  and  more  abundantly  than  seedlings. 


82  GRAPE  CULTUKK  AND 

PHYLLOXERA — RESISTANT  VINES. 

The  subject  of  vine  stocks  that  will  resist  the  attacks  of  the 
phylloxera,  and  can  be  safely  used  for  the  establishment  of 
vineyards  in  infested  districts  by  grafting,  is  one  of  growing 
importance  to  California,  since  upon  these  vines  rest,  at  this 
time,  the  only  hope  of  permanently  maintaining  vine  culture 
in  the  most  noted  viticultural  regions  of  the  State.  Although 
the  progress  of  the  pest  is  materially  slower  in  California  than 
in  Europe,  from  causes  adverted  to  in  the  last  annual  report, 
yet  it  is  none  the  less  certain.  To  ignore  this  fact  is  to  imi- 
tate the  fabled  ostrich,  hiding  its  head  in  the  sand  to  escape 
its  pursuers;  and  yet  the  indisposition  to  face  the  facts  and 
prepare  to  meet  the  inevitable  in  the  best  possible  state  of  de- 
fense is  still  so  common,  that  the  subject  of  the  phylloxera  is 
"  taboo  "  in  many  places  w here  he  that  runs  may  read  the 
signs  by  the  wayside,  in  the  dying  or  fading  vines  that  spot 
the  vineyards;  and  he  that  calls  attention  to  it  is  denounced 
as  one  who  would  "spoil  the  sale  of  the  land."  It  is  high 
time  that  this  false  and  pernicious  reticence  and  hiding-away 
should  cease,  and  with  it  the  useless  expenditure  annually  in- 
curred in  the  replanting  of  infested  ground  with  non-resistant 
vines,  or  without  any  of  the  other  precautions  or  preventive 
'measures  that  would  make  such  expenditure  a  reasonable  busi- 
ness venture. 

Since  of  late  much  has  been  said  about  resistant  vines 
being  after  all  non-resistants,  upon  the  ground  that  in  some 
cases  they  have  succumbed,  it  is  proper  that  the  causes  of 
of  such  occurrences  should  be  placed  in  their  true  light,  so 
far  as  the  facts  reported  will  justify  conclusions;  It  is  a  mat- 
ter of  regret  that  it  has  not  been  feasible  to  undertake  an  ex- 
haustive personal  examination  of  such  cases;  but  what  is  cer- 
tainly known  is  sufficient  to  account  for  most  of  the  well  au- 
thenticated instances  of  failure. 


WINK-MAKINC;    IN   CALIFORNIA.  83 

The  Meaning  of  "  Resistant  " — First  of  all  it  is  necessary 
to  dispel  the  illusion  entertained  by  some,  that  resistant  vines 
are  such  as  are  not  attacked  by  the  phylloxera.  So  far  as  our 
knowledge  extends  at  this  time,  the  insect  will  feed  on  any 
and  all  of  the  members  of  the  true  vine  tribe  (vifis  proper) 
when  occasion  offers;  but  it  is  evident  that  some  are  better 
adapted  to  the  taste  or  nature  of  the  phylloxera  than  others, 
and  are,  therefore,  more  numerously  infested  when  planted  in 
the  same  ground  with  others;  just  as  cattle  will  pasture  on 
the  sweet  grasses  in  preference  to  the  sour  ones.  The  Euro- 
pean vine  (vinifera)  appears,  on  the  whole,  to  be  the  one 
most  uniformly  adapted  to  the  insects'  taste  in  all  its  varieties, 
and  is  always  attacked  in  preference.  It  evidently  offers  the 
best  conditions  for  the  life  and  multiplication  of  the  pest 

It  is  not,  then,  a  proof  of  non-resistance  when  a  vine  is 
found  to  be  more  or  less  infested;  for,  so  far  as  we  know, 
there  are  no  true  vines  of  which  the  phylloxera  will  not  at- 
tack the  roots  when  presented  to  them. 

The  true  criterion  is  that  the  resistant  vine  and  its  roots  will 
not  only  outlive  the  attacks,  but  flourish  and  bear  remunera- 
tivecrops  under  the  same  conditions  under  which  the  more 
•sensitive  European  vines  will  succumb. 

But  every -vine,  like  every  other  plant,  is  subject  to  certain 
conditions  of  soil,  climate,  and  atmosphere  for  its  welfare. 
Any  vine,  or  any  other  plant,  may  be  planted  where  from  un- 
favorable conditions  it  will  not  flourish,  and  where  a  slight 
addition  to  the  adverse  influences  may  cause  it  to  either  die 
or  maintain  only  a  feeble  existence,  useless  to  the  cultivator 
for  profit.  The  resistant  vines  are  no  exception  to  this  gen- 
eral rule, 

They  have  been  planted,  and  expected  to  yield  satisfactory 
results,  where  vines  have  been  fruited  for  twenty  or  thirty 
years  without  the  use  of  a  particle  of  manure,  and  where,  as  a 


84  ,  (iBAPE   CULTURE  AND 

result,  the  old  vines,  as  well  as  the  new  "  resistant  "  ones,, 
have  died  from  sheer  inanition. 

They  have  been  planted  where  no  vine  ever  should  be,  if  it 
is  to  yield  decent  returns — in  soils  underlaid  at  a  few  feet  by 
impervious  hardpan,  and  where  the  roots  would  remain 
drenched  in  cold  water  until  late  in  spring.  They  have  not 
resisted,  as  it  was  best  they  should  not. 

Cuttings,  or  rooted  vines,  have  been  planted  in  holes  from 
which  dying  phylloxerated  vines  had  just  been  extracted. 
They  have  found  the  cumulative  pressure  of  having  to  take 
root  in  fresh  ground,  and  at  the  same  time  to  feed  a  swarm 
of  half-starved  phylloxera  coming  from  the  outlying  roots  of 
the  old  vine,  too  much  for  them.  They  have  failed  to  resist 
what  no  young  plant  could  be  expected  to  survive  under  any 
circumstances.  Some  have  survived  to  the  second,  and  even 
third  year,  struggling  against  these  adverse  conditions,  but  have 
finally  succumbed,  as  they  might  have  been  expected  to  do 
before.  And  again  we  hear  of  a  damning  example  of  the 
failure  of  the  resistant  vines. 

Adaptations  of  Vines  to  Soils. — But  beyond  such  cases  as 
these,  which  are  intelligible  and  avoidable  under  the  guidance 
of  common  sense  alone,  there  is  another  class  of  reported 
failures  which  is  clearly  referable  to  the  want  of  special  adap- 
tation of  the  vine  chosen  as  a  resistant,  to  the  particular  soils 
or  location  in  which  they  were  planted. 

It  is  not  reasonable  to  suppose  that  a  vine  which  is  naturally 
at  home  in  rich,  heavy  lowland  soils,  should  not  only  flourish 
but  supply  extra  strength  against  attack  from  without,  in  thin, 
meager  uplands,  or  on  land  exhausted  by  long  cultivation; 
nor  that  a  vine  whose  hardy  roots  resist  the  phylloxera  when 
growing  in  its  natural  location  on  dry,  rocky  uplands,  will 
necessarily  retain  this  character  when  grown  in  rich,  moist 
lowland.  To  a  certain  extent,  cultivation  does  modify  and 
equalize  the  natural  soil-conditions,  especially  when  it  is  thor- 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  85 

ough  and  is  faithfully  kept  up.  But  there  always  remains  a 
certain  margin  of  natural  adaptation  which  must  be  respected 
even  in  the  cultivated  plant,  and  the  more  because  climatic 
and  seasonal  conditions  may  render  a  strict  fulfillment  of  the 
best  culture  impracticable  or  unavailing  for  the  time  being. 
Those  cultivating  adobe  soils  will  appreciate  the  importance 
which  this  consideration  may  acquire,  not  only  for  one,  but 
for  several  consecutive  seasons. 

Species  and  Varieties  of  Rcsistants. — Of  the  American  spe- 
cies and  varieties  that,  for  practical  purposes,  may  be  consid- 
ered as  resistant  under  proper  conditions  of  soil  and  moisture, 
the  following  are  the  most  prominent: 

i .  The  Vitis,  Riparia,  or  northern  riverside  grape  and  its 
cultivated  varieties,  of  which  the  Taylor  and  the  Clinton  are 
the  chief.  The  resistant  power  of  the  latter  is  now,  however, 
pretty  generally  admitted  to  be  inferior  to  that  of  their  wild 
prototype,  although  they  are  better  adapted  to  a  great  variety 
of  soils.  The  Riparia  is  in  its  wild  state  emphatically  a  "river- 
side "  grape,  which  in  its  natural  condition  ascends  into  the 
uplands  only  exceptionally,  when  these  are  unusually  moist 
and  fertile.  Un'der  cultivation,  nevertheless,  it  does  well  on 
good  upland,  but  is  of  slower  growth  than  in  its  natural 
habitat.  It  does  not  frequent  the  heavier  soils  as  much  as  the 
alluvial  loams,  of  the  upper  Mississippi  Valley.  It  is  of  very 
long-jointed,  slender  growth,  so  that  its  canes,  while  of  great 
length  and  bearing  abundance  of  foliage,  are  often  borne  by  a 
surprisingly  thin  trunk,  which  is  not  as  easy  to  graft  as  most 
other  varieties.  The  cuttings  root  with  great  ease,  but  gen- 
erally only  a  portion,  varying  according  to  the  soil  and  sea- 
sons from  one  half  to  three  fourths,  are  large  enough  to  be 
successfully  grafted  the  third  year;  seedlings  arrive  at  about 
the  same  condition  the  fourth  year  from  the  seed.  To  offset 
these  disadvantages  the  Riparia  is  now  usually  considered  the 


OR  APE  CULTUKK    AND 


most  generally  and  tenaciously  resistant  toward  the  attacks  of 
the  phylloxera.     It  is  very  little  liable  to  mildew. 

2.  Vitis  Cordifolia,  the  southern  riverside  grape,  so  greatly 
resembles  the  Riparia  that  for  some  time  it  was  not  distin- 
guished as  a  separate  species.    While  it  is  undoubtedly  a  very 
resistant  stock,  the  fact   that  it   is  at  home  in  a  region  noted 
for  its  perpetually  moist  atmosphere,  seems   to  render  it  less 
promising  for  general  success  in  California  than  the  Riparia^ 
over  which,  so  far  as  known,  it   possesses  no  special  advan- 
tages, save,  perhaps  in  the  case  of  very  heavy  adobe  soils,  to 
which  it  is  better  adapted  than  the  Riparia. 

3.  The   Vitis  crstivalis  or  summer  grape  is  a  native  of  the 
uplands  of  the  States  east  of  the   Mississippi,  and  is  at  home 
on  loam  soils  of  good  or  fair  fertility.     It  also  descends  into 
the  lowlands  of  the  smaller  streams,  so  that  it  and  the  Riparia 
vine  are  not  uncommonly  seen  side  by  side.      But  it  is  rarely 
if  ever  found  in  the  larger  bottoms,  though  quite  at  home  in 
.the  lighter  and  usually  well   drained   "second  bottoms  "  or 
f'  hammocks."    Unlike  the  riverside  grape,  it  objects  to  "  wet 
feet."     It  is  a   little  subject  to   mildew.     Of  the  cultivated 
varieties  of  the  &stivalis  grape,    those   of  'chief  interest  as 
resistants  are  Norton's  Virginia,  Herbemont,   and  the   well- 
known   Lenoir.     The  cuttings  of  these,  as  well   as  the  wild 
vine,   root  with   some  difficulty;    they  should  be   rooted  in 
nursery,  and  not  in  the  vineyard  itself. 

A  very  striking  example  of  the  resistant  powers  of  the  wild 
sEstiralis  vine  exists  in  this  State,  in  the  vineyard  of  John  R. 
Wolfskill,  on  Ptitah  Creek,  two  miles  from  Winters,  just  within 
.Solano  County.  This  case  was  alluded  to  in  a  previous  re- 
port (1882),  but  the  stock  was  incorrectly  stated  to  be  Lenoir. 
It  has  since  been  ascertained  by  Mr.  W.  G.  Klee  to  be  a  wild 
^stivalis  variety  obtained  at  least  ten  years  ago  by  Mr. 
Wolfskill  from  Alabama,  under  the  name  of  "coon  grape." 
It  has  a  leaf  much  like  the  Lenoir,  but  bears  a  small,  com- 


WIKK-MAKINC;    IX    CALIFORNIA.  87 

pact  bunch  of  sweet  berries.  Several  hundred  Muscat  grafts 
were  made  upon  this  stalk  when  two  years  old,  with  scarcely 
any  loss;  and  more  lately  some  Huasco  cuttings,  obtained 
from  the  University,  were  similarly  engrafted.  Both  are 
bearing  heavily  and  regularly,  while  the  Vinifjra  vines  around 
have  long  since  been  destroyed  by  the  phylloxera. 

4.  Vitis  Riipestris,  the  sugar  or  rock  grape  of  Missouri,  is 
a  very  hardy  vine,  at  home  on  rocky  knolls  and  hillsides, 
where  its  wiry  roots  extract  nourishment  from  the  scanty  soil 
and  the  crevices  of  rocks,  in  a  climate  already  partaking 
somewhat  of  the  aridity  of  the  great  plains.  It  would,  there- 
fore, seem  to  be  of  considerable  promise  for  the  foothills  of 
California  especially;  of  its  resistance  to  the  phylloxera  there 
can  be  no  question.  It  is,  however,  not  easy  to  root  from 
cuttings,  being,  in  this  respect,  like  the  cestiralis  varieties. 
In  my  personal  experience  I  have  found  it  to  be  of  slow 
growth  on  rich  upland  adobe,  even  more  so  than  the  Riparia, 
so  that  when  the  top  of  the  stock  is  sufficiently  stout  for  graft- 
ing, that  portion  generally  tapers  off  very  rapidly  downward, 
so  as  to  afford  very  little  "  grip  "  for  the  graft,  which  has  to  be 
tied  in  very  thoroughly.  Whether  from  want  of  care  in  this 
respect  or  from  the  use  of  too  many  small  stocks,  my  success 
in  grafting  j;he  Rupestris  the  third  year  from  the  cutting  has 
been  very  slight.  The  successful  grafts,  however,  have  shown 
a  vigorous  growth,  and  seem  well  joined.  The  multitude  of 
wiry  suckers  which  the  stock  persists  in  putting  forth  to  the 
end  of  the  season,  constitutes  an  inconvenience,  shared  to 
some  extent  by  the  Riparia,  and  least  of  all  by  the  Califor- 
nica,  which  soon  gives  up  sprouting  its  easily  detatched  suck- 
ers. The  Rupestris  is  least  subject  to  mildew  of  all  the  re- 
sistant stocks. 

Vitis  Californica,  the  California  wild  grape  (not,  as  some 
still  imagine,  the  "  Mission  "  vine,  which  is  very  sensitive  to- 
ward the  phylloxera),  has  been  prominently  brought  forward 


88  GKAPI-:  CULTURE   AND 

as  a  resistant  stock  for  use  in  its  native  state,  to  the  climate, 
of  which  it  must  be  presumed  to  be  especially  adapted.  This 
reasonable  presumption  gives  it  so  great  a  claim  to  attention 
and  renders  its  preeminent  success  so  probable,  that  nothing 
but  the  strongest  proof  of  its  non-resistance  should  induce  us 
to  relinquish  its  use.  Even  a  cursory  examination  of  its  root- 
habit  shows  that  it  understands  the  climate  thoroughly.  Two 
or  three  strong  cord-like  roots  start  a  few  inches  below  the 
surface  of  the  ground,  from  a  short  but  very  stout  trunk;  and, 
without  branching  or  emitting  rootlets,  they  go  almost  directly 
down  for  from  eight  to  twelve  inches,  according  to  the  nature 
of  the  soil.  Then  they  begin  to  branch,  but  still  with  down- 
ward tendency,  and  without  splitting  into  fine  rootlets,  until 
they  are  fairly  below  the  point  to  which  the  summer  drought 
is  ordinarily  expected  to  reach.  Unlike  the  Riparia,  its  roots 
are  thick  and  fleshy,  or  cartilaginous,  rather  than  wiry,  and 
one  might  suppose  that  it  would  invite  rather  than  "repel  the 
attacks  of  the  tender-billed  insect.  The  latter  attacks  it  un- 
hesitatingly, .although  it  evidently  prefers  the  non-resistant 
Vinifera  roots  when  these  are  within  reach.  The  bites  of  the 
phylloxera  on  the  cartilaginous  roots  and  rootlets  of  the  6V///- 
fornica,  however,  do  not  result  in  the  distortion  which  insures 
the  ultimate  death  and  decay  of  the  organs  of  the  non-resist- 
ant vines  so  soon  as  they  begin  the  process  of  turning  into 
wood  (lignification).  The  wound  will  be  found  surrounded 
by  a  raised  ring  which  makes  it  resemble  a  miniature  crater; 
but  the  formation  of  this  swelling  does  not  materially  deform 
the  soft  root  as  it  would  a  hard  one.  As  it  is  well  understood 
that  it  is  not  so  much  the  direct  depletion  caused  by  the  in- 
sect's feeding,  as  the  death  of  the  roots  caused  by  the  distor- 
tion, that  constitutes  the  fatal  injury  in  the  case  of  the  Vinifera 
stock.  The  cause  of  the  resistance  of  the  Caiifornica  is  ob- 
vious enough.  Here  and  there  a  rootlet,  attacked  by  over- 
whelming numbers,  may  be  overcome  and  die;  but  if  the  vine 


WINK-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  &> 

be  placed  under  reasonably  normal  conditions  of  existence,  it 
survives  the  loss  so  caused  without  any  sensible  effect  either 
upon  its  general  appearance  or,  what  is  most  important,  its 
productiveness.  It  goes  without  saying  that  the  Californica^ 
like  any  other  vine,  may  be  planted  in  the  wrong  place,  where 
its  half-starved  roots  become  hardened,  and  instead  of  yield- 
ing so  as  to  render  deformation  impossible,  will  curve  and 
curl,  and  finally  die  and  decay. 

Among  the  many  instances  in  which  the  Californica  has 
satisfactorily  shown  its  resistance  to  the  phylloxera  when 
planted  on  appropriate  soils,  may  be  mentioned  that  on  the 
University  grounds,  where  grafted  seedlings,  planted  in  1882 
in  the  holes  from  which  badly  infested  stocks  had  just  been 
taken,  have  ever  since  maintained  a  vigorous  growth  and 
abundant  bearing.  Also  that  of  Mr.  M.  Thurber,  in  Pleas- 
ant's  Valley,  to  whom,  in  1882,  some  grafted  Californica 
seedlings  were  sent  from  the  University,  for  trial  on  his  in- 
fested ground.  They  were  planted  among  Viniferas  dying 
from  the  attack  of  the  phylloxera,  that  have  since  been  re- 
moved. -  The  vines  on  Californica  roots,  according  to  his 
statement  made  to  Mr.  W.  G.  Klee,  are  to-day  vigorous  and 
bearing  heavily.  With  such  facts  before  us,  cases  of  reported 
failures  require  careful  sifting  before  any  conclusions  are 
based  upon  them. 

The  Californica  is  very  liable  to  mildew,  and  it  is  probably 
from  this  cause  that  it  is  but  rarely  found  on  the  coastward 
slope  of  the  coast  ranges,  which  are  much  exposed  to  the  sea- 
fogs.  There  is,  however,  no  difficulty  in  protecting  it  by 
repeated  sulphuring  up  to  the  time  of  grafting. 

Vitis  Arizonica,  the  wild  grapevine  of  Arizona  and  Sonora, 
resembles  somewhat  the  Californica  in  its  general  appearance 
and  habits  of  growth.  The  leaves,  however,  are  uniformly 
smaller  and  lighter  colored,  and  more  glossy  ;  the  wood  is  of 
a  light-gray  tint,  and  the  branches  are  very  numerous  and 


90  GRAPE  CULTURE    AND 

thin,  with  a  tendency  to  the  formation  of  long  terminal  run- 
ners. In  rapidity  of  growth  it  seems  to  be  nearly  or  quite 
equal  to  the  California,  and  quite  its  equal  in  resistance  to 
the  phylloxera,  as  well  as  to  drought.  It  is  subject  to  mildew 
nearly  as  much  as  the  former.  Its  roots,  also,  seek  the  depths 
"of  the  soil  before  branching,  and  the  stock  is  stout  and 
easily  grafted.  From  experience  had  at  the  University,  it 
deserves  more  attention  than  has  heretofore  been  bestowed 
upon  it. 

SPECIAL  ADAPTATIONS  OF  THE  SEVERAL  RESISTANT   STOCKS. 

There  is  no  reason  why,  in  grafting  grapevines,  as  great  care 
should  not  be  exercised  in  the  selection  of  stocks  adapted  to 
the  soil,  and  to  the  variety  to  be  desired  for  bearing  purposes 
as  is  done  by  orchardists  here  and  elsewhere. 

Just  as  every  intelligent  fruit  grower  will  carefully  consider 
when  planting  an  orchard,  what  will  be  the  stocks  best 
adapted  to  his  soil  and  locality,  so  the  grape-grower  must  con- 
sider, so  far  as  experience  or  other  considerations  can  forecast 
it,  which  among  the  resistant  grape  stocks  will  be  likely  to  do 
best  in  his  vineyard.  An  improper  choice  will  be  just  as 
fatal  to  success  in  one  case  as  in  the  other;  there  is  no  one 
stock  that  is  adapted  to  all  cases.  It  is  not  a  little  singular 
that  in  this,  as  well  as  in  some  other  points  in  the  treatment 
of  the  vine  and  of  its  products,  there  should  be  a  tendency  to 
think  of  it  as  an  exception  to  the  general  rules  that  govern  in 
"the  treatment  of  other  fruits;  so  that  a  sort  of  wholesale  rule- 
of-thumb  is  applied  to  it  that  would  be  scouted  in  other  cases 
by  the  same  persons.  It  has  been  claimed  that  not  only  the 
-resistance  of  the  California!!  and  other  wild  American  stocks 
to  the  phylloxera  has  not  been  well  proven,  but  that  no  per- 
fect union  between  the  Vinifera  graft  and  the  Calijornica  stock 
is  formed,  and  that  the  graft  is  liable  to  be  blown  over  at  any 
time;  and  finally,  that  if  successfully  grafted,  there  is  no  proof 


WINK-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  91 

that  such  grafts  will  bear,  or  that  the  grapes  will  correspond 
to  the  quality  of  the  scion. 

As  to  the  latter  point,  it  may  well  be  claimed  as  an  estab- 
lished fact  that  the  scion  determines,  in  all  cases,  the  char- 
acter of  the  fruit,  when  any  is  formed.  To  deny  this  is  to 
deny  a  fundamental  axiom  in  horticulture,  which  has  been 
demonstrated  myriads  of  times  for  thousands  of  years.  Minor 
differences  may,  it  is  true,  arise  from  the  habits  of  growth  of 
the  stock  as  compared  with  those  of  the  graft  when  on  its  own 
root,  whether  as  to  rapidity  of  development,  nourishment 
drawn  from  the  soil,  adaptation  to  climate,  etc.  In  this  re- 
spect the  vine  does  not  differ  from  other  fruits,  for  which  the 
best  stock  has  to  be  ascertained  by  trial  in  each  region. 

As  to  the  bearihg  of  fruit,  it  is  well  known  that,  under  cer- 
tain circumstances  of  soil  and  climate,  it  may  be  greatly  re- 
tarded, or  even  suppressed.  But  the  grafts  made  on  the 
University  grounds  on  Californica  stocks  have  all  borne 
abundantly  and  early;  and  apart  from  many  other  examples  of 
the  same  kind,  Mr.  Packard's  experience  in  his  one-hundred- 
acre  grafted  vineyard,  three  years  from  the  seed  (reported  be- 
low), is  a  living  example,  than  which  a  stronger  cannot  readily 
be  found  for  othtr  vines. 

At  the  vineyard  of  Mr.  W.  G.  Klee,  in  the  Santa  Cruz 
Mountains,  near  Alma,  Mataro,  Charbono,  and  Verdal 
grafted  on  the  Californica  stock  three  years  ago,  have  been 
bearing  abundantly  ever  since.  Similar  results  have  been  ob- 
tained by  many  others. 

As  to  the  success  of  the  grafts  when  properly  made,  the 
showing  of  98  per  cent,  of  successess  in  the  case  of  Mr. 
Packard,  cannot  be  easily  excelled^  by  grafts  made  on  other 
stocks.  As  to  the  strength  of  the  union,  our  experience  here 
has  been  that  when  well  made  the  junction  becomes  imper- 
ceptible and  -as  strong  as  any  other  part  of  the  vine. 

It  is  trtie  that  when  a  strong  grower  is  grafted  upon  a  weak 


D2  GRAPE' CULTURE    AND 

one,  there  may  be  difficulty  on  account  of  the  weak  base  of  a 
stouter  trunk.  But  in  the  reverse  case  there  is  no  trouble, 
for  a  relatively  stout  base  for  a  weak  trunk  is  desirable.  The 
strong-growing  Californica  will,  in  its  own  home,  furnish  just 
such  a  stock  for  all,  or  almost  all,  the  Vinifera  varieties,  which 
it  exceeds  in  growth  whenever  planted  in  appropriate  soils. 

In  my  personal  experience  with  the  Californica,  I  have 
found  only  one  variety  which  seems  to  exceed-  it  -a  little  in 
growth  when  grafted,  viz. :  the  Clairette  Blanche,  which  is  an 
extraordinary  grower.  In  the  case  of  five  other  varieties 
grafted  in  my  vineyard  (Black  Burgundy,  Palomino,  Mon- 
deuse,  Verdelho,  Cinsaut)  the  graft  junction  is  at  the  end  of 
the  season  either  straight  (z.  e. ,  a  cylinder),  or  like  a  wine 
bottle  right  side  up,  the  Calif "omica  stock,  forming  the  body  of 
the  bottle,  the  graft  the  neck.  There  can  be  no  doubt  that 
in  these  cases  the  stock  will  push  the  growth  of  the  grafted 
variety. 

Where  the  same  varieties  have  been  grafted  on  \ht.Riparia 
or  Rupestris  stock,  the  case  is  just  the  reverse.  Here  the 
graft  junction  resembles  a  bottle  placed  neck  down,  and  it  is 
at  least  questionable  that  the  stock  will  be  able  to  supply  fully 
the  needs  of  the  graft,  and  pretty  certain  that  it  will  not  tend 
to  push  the  latter  beyond  what  its  growth  would  be  if  on  its 
•own  root.  In  the  case  of  the  Rupestris  and  Clairette,  the 
disproportion  is  painful  to  contemplate,  the  quill-like  stock 
.appearing  absurdly  inadequate  to  the  support  of  the  graft  that . 
has  swelled  to  the  proportion  of  a  man's  thumb.  That  this 
is  felt  by  the  stock  is  apparent  from  the  frequency  with  which 
the  grafts  have  thrown  out  their  own  roots  when  on  either 
Rupestris  or  Riparia  stock,  thus  defeating  the  primary  object 
of  grafting  at  all.  No  such  tendency  is  seen  in  the  same 
varieties  where  they  are  on  the  Californica  stock. 

But  this,  it  must  be  remembered,' happens  on  a  soil  pccu- 


WINK-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  •        93 

liarly  well  adapted  to  the  Californica,  and  on  which  the  Ru- 
pestris, at  least,  should  not  have  been  used  at  all. 

Experience,  which  appears  in  some  respects  the  reverse  of 
my  own,  has  been  had  by  the  Briggs  Brothers,  near  Winters, 
as  reported  by  Mr.  W.  G.  Klee.  The  vineyard  tract  in 
question  is  located  on  Putah  Creek  alluvium  and  was  planted 
with  Muscat  vines,  which,  notwithstanding  the  deep  rich  soil, 
began  dying  the  third  year  from  planting,  being  attacked  by 
the  phylloxera.  A  few  years  ago,  a  number  of  resistant  vines 
were  planted  among  the  Muscats  for  trial  as  to  their  resistance 
and  general  success;  they  were,  besides  the  Rupestris,  Ripa- 
ria,  Californica,  and  Arizonica,  a  number  of  the  cultivated 
American  vines,  such  as  Herbemont,  Lenoir,  Elvira,  Taylor, 
etc.  On  the  whole,  all  are  doing  well,  but  of  the  wild  species 
the  Rupestris  is  beyond  question  the  strongest  grower.  Be- 
tween Riparia  and  Arizonica  it  is  hard  to  decide  which  is  the 
"most  vigorous,  but  the  Californica,  while  doing  fairly  well,  is 
on  the  whole  the  poorest  in  growth,  and  on  examination,  the 
phylloxera  was  found  to  be  apparently  most  numerous  on  the 
Californica  roots.  It  was  stated  that  in  another  part  of  the 
vineyard,  not  infested  with  phylloxera,  the  Californica  is  de- 
cidedly more  vigorous  than  where  it  is  among  the  infested 
vines. 

It  appears  that  in  this  case  the  Rupestris  finds,  in  the  more 
congenial  lighter  soil  of  the  Putah  alluvium,  favorable  con- 
ditions which  are  wanting  in  the  rich  adobe  of  Mission  San 
Jose,  yet  without  losing  its  resistant  qualities,  which  on  the 
whole,  probably  exceed  those  of  the  'Californica.  The  lat- 
ter represents  among  the  vines  what  the  plum  stock  does 
among  stone  fruits,  while  the  Rupestris  (and  probably  the 
^Estivalis  varieties)  are  the  parallels  of  the  peach  or  almond 
stocks;  and  doubtless  they  are  as  little  interchangeable  as  are: 
the  two  orchard  stocks. 


94  GRAPK   CULTURE   AND 

SOILS    ADAPTED    TO    THE    CALIFORNICA. 

It  is  obviously  of  the  utmost  importance  that  the  con- 
ditions of  the  successful  growth  of  the  promising  Californian 
vine  should  be  fully  understood  by  those  contemplating  its 
use  as  a  resistant  stock.  Searching  for  a  data  on  this  sub- 
ject, I  was  led,  some  years  ago,  to  notice  cases  of  particular 
luxuriance  in  its  growth,  and  more  especially  those  in  which 
it  ascends  from  its  usual  habitat  in  the  moist  lowlands,  to 
the  drier  uplands.  A  very  notable  instance  of  this  kind 
was  fully  investigated  by  me  in  1884,  and  the  results  pub- 
Mshed  in  Bulletin  No.  24,  of  the  College  of  Agriculture,  of 
which  the  relevant  portion  is  given  below : 

No.  799.  Valley  soil,  taken  on  a  creek  heading  near  Nun's  Caiion,  on 
the  Oakville  and  Glen  Ellen  Eoad,  Napa  County.*  The  valley  is  a 
narrow  one,  of  a  briskly  flowing  stream  on  the  Napa  side  of  the 
divide.  It  is  not  under  cultivation  near  the  point  where  the  sample 
was  taken,  but  the  spot  is  remarkable  for  the  luxuriant  growth  of  wild 
grapevines  which  cover  not  only  the  bottom,  but  run  high  up  on  the 
hillsides.  The  opportunity  seemed  a  good  one  for  ascertaining  just 
what  kind  of  soil  the  California  wild  vine  delights  in,  thus  giving  a 
clue  to  the  proper  selection  of  soils  on  which  it  is  to  form  the  stocks. 
There  is  apparently  little  change  in  the  soil  for  twelve  or  eighteen 
inches;  it  is  of  a  gray  tint,  stimsii,  and  bakes  very  hard  when  dry,  un- 
tilled  ;  a  light  adobe  or  clay  loam.  For  want  of  tools  for  digging,  the 
soil  was  taken  to  the  depth  of  eight  inches  only.  It  contains  no 
coarse  material,  save  a  fragment  of  slate  here  and  there.  Its  analysis 
resulted  as  follows: 

VALLEY   SOIL,  SONOMA    MOUNTAINS. 

Insoluble  matter 63.55  \     r.Q  no 

Soluble  silica,..:... 5.54  /     oy'uy 

Potash...... 1.66 

Soda.... 22 

Lime : . .' .  . . ,: 60 

Magnesia '. 1.94 

Br.  oxide  of  magnanese 11 

Peroxide  of  iron 4.5 1 

*On  the  occasion  of  a  tour  of  observation,  made  under  the  auspices 
of  the  Viticultural  Commission,  October,  1834. 


WINK-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  95 

Alumina ; 18.71 

Phosphoric  acid 17 

iSulphuric  acid 07 

Water  and  organic  matter 7.d8 


Total -99.55 

Humus 2.16 

Available  inorganic .49 

Hygroscopic  moisture 7.78 

Absorbed  at 15°  C. 

The  analysis  shows  good  cause  for  the  preference  of  the  vine  for  th  is 
soil,  which  is  an  unusually  rich  one  in  all  the  elements  of  plant  food. 
Its  potash  percentage  is  the  highest  thus  far  observed  in  California, 
outside  of  alkali  lands.  Its  supply  of  lime  is  not  unusually  large,  but 
still  abundant ;  its  phosphoric  acid  percentage  is  among  the  highest 
thus  far  found  in  the  State,  as  is,  outside  of  marsh  soils,  that  of  humus. 
In  fact,  any  plant  whatsoever  might  be  well  pleased  with  such  a  soil ; 
and  the  facts  show  that  the  native  vine  can  be  a  rank  feeder  when  op- 
portunity is  offered.  These  vines  seemed  to  be  young  and  had  little 
fruit  set,  but  whether  the  latter  point  was  an  accident  of  the  season,  or 
whether  the  soil  is  too  rich  for  full  bearing,  requires  farther  observa- 
tion to  determine.  If  the  latter  be  true,  the  remedy  in  such  cases 
would,  perhaps,  lie  in  the  use  of  lime  around  the  vines. 

To  the  above  conclusions  should  probably  have  been 
added  what  seems  abundantly  obvious  now,  with  a  larger  ex- 
perience and  scope  of  observation,  viz  :  That  the  Calif or- 
nica^  especially,  seeks  calcareous  soils,  which,  on  the  whole, 
are  unusually  prevalent  in  California  ;  and  that  its  failure  to 
give  satisfactory  results  in  the  well  worn  soils  of  Southern 
France,  regarding  the  calcareous  or  non-calcareous  nature  of 
which  we  are  without  information,  may  readily  be  referable  to 
either  of  two  causes,  without  prejudice  to  the  resistant  qual- 
ities of  the  native  vine  in  the  soils  and  climate  of  California. 

So  far  as  observations  go,  it  appears  that  the  Calif  arnica 
is  particularly  adapted  to  fertile  and  heavy  soils  rich  in  lime. 
In  these  its  growth  is  certainly  extraordinary,  far  outstripping 
that  of  any  other  vine  that  has  come  within  my  observation  ; 
while  in  the  equally  heavy,  but  much  less  fertile  soil  of  the 
University  vineyard  plot  at  Berkeley,  its  growth  has  been 


96  GRAPE  CULTURE    AND 

about  the  same  as  that  of  the  Vinifera  and  other  stocks  on 
the  same  soil,  but  uninfested  by  the  phylloxera. 

Rapidity  of  Development  of  the  Several  Resistant   Vines. 

That  in  our  climate  the  Calif  arnica  develops  most  rapidly 
of  all,  especially  as  to  making  a  stock  of  grafting  size,  is 
hardly  doubtful.  The  experiments  made  at  the  University 
from  1 88 1  to  the  present  time,  as  well  as  personal  experience 
in  my  vineyard  at  Mission  San  Jose,  fully  corroborate  the 
•claim  that  the  Californica  is  a  stock  of  extraordinary  vigor  on 
favorable  soils,  and  will  bear  very  early  "grafting.  It  wity  be 
remembered  that  in  the  first  experiments  made  with  the  graft- 
ing of  seedlings  at  the  University,  in  1881,  of  seedlings  one 
year  old  about  forty  per  cent,  were  found  stout  enough  for 
grafting,  and  were  successfully  grafted  ;  a  thing  not  even  re- 
motely possible  with  any  other  species^  of  vine  yet  tested,  and 
least  of  all  perhaps  with  the  Riparia,  whose  seedlings  are  of 
exceedingly  slow  development.  Thus,  of  a  plantation  of 
Riparia  seedlings  located  on  exceedingly  favorable  soil  on 
Mr.  John  T.  Doyle's  place  at  Cupertino,  not  one  could  have 
been  grafted  when  two  years  old,  and  only  a  few  per  cent, 
were  fairly  graftable  w:hen  four  years  old. 

At  my  own  vineyard  at  Mission  San  Jose,  the  stocks  from 
•one-year-old  Californica  seedlings  planted  in  spring  of  1884, 
were  without  exception  large  enough  to  be  grafted  in  spring 
1885,  despite  a  very  unfavorable  season.  They  were  not 
actually  grafted,  however,  until  March  and  April,  1886,  when, 
notwithstanding  the  extraordinarily  dry  season  preceding,  the 
trunks  ranged  in  thickness  from  a  minimum  of  two-thirds  of 
.an  inch  to  fully  one  and  a  quarter  inch,  and  sometimes  more; 
so  that  two  grafts  could  readily  have  been  inserted  in  a  large 
portion  of  them.  Of  the  Ripa?-ia  cuttings  planted  at  the 
same  time  as  the  Californica  seedlings,  few  exceeded  one-half 
inch  in  thickness,  and  very  many  were  too  slender  to  be 
^grafted  with  any  prospect  of  success,  especially  in  view  of 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  97 

their  large  pith.  Of  the  Rupestris  cuttings  planted  at  the 
same  time,  few  reached  the  thickness  of  half  an  inch,  and 
many  appeared  no  thicker  than  when  planted,  three  years  be- 
fore, except  that  they  had  at  the  top  a  short  head,  like  that  of 
an  old  short-pruned  stock,  but  too  short  to  be  of  any  use  in 
making  the  graft. 

In  this  case,  however,  all  the  conditions  were  most  favorable 
to  the  Calif ornica  stock,  as  observed  on  the  wild  vine  on  its 
own  ground.  The  soil  is  a  medium  to  very  heavy  adobe, 
fairly  to  highly  calcareous,  and  of  a  depth  of  several  feet,  under- 
laid by  a  gravelly  "cement"  and  finally  by  a  sandy  substratum. 
Analysis  shows  it  to  be  rich  in  potash,  phosphates,  and  humus, 
.and  the  experience  of  Mr.  John  Gallegos  has  shown  it  to  be 
specially  adapted  to  the  production  of  heavy-bodied  and 
-deep-tinted  red  wines.  The  case  is  quite  analogous  to  that 
observed  in  the  Sonoma  Mountains,  as  quoted  above. 

A  prominent  case  of  remarkable  "push"  on  the  part  of  the 
California  wild  stock  is  that  reported  by  Mr.  J.  E.  Packard  of 
Pomona,  Los  Angeles  County,  an  account  of  which  (pub- 
lished in  Bulletin  No.  45  of  the  College  of  Agriculture,  Octo- 
ber 9,  1885)  is  given  below. 

Bulletin  No.  45. 

REMARKABLE   GROWTH    OF    VINES. 

Scarcely  more  than  two  years  ago  Mr.  Packard  purchased,  in  differ- 
ent locations,  two  tracts  of  land  of  170  and  86  acres,  and  immediately 
began  the  improvement  of  the  same.  The  tract  of  land  consisting  of 
170  acres  is  situated  four  miles  northwest  of  Pomona,  on  ,the  San  Ber- 
nardino road,  and  is  of  the  very  richest  soil.  Planting  the  main  body 
•of  the  place  to  vines,  the  wild  or  native  California  grape  was  secured, 
and  this  year  grafted  to  Zinfandel,  Burger,  and  Mataro  varieties.  The 
growth  made  by  the  vines  on  this  place  is  simply  astonishing,  as  no 
water  whatever  was  used,  and  it  is  sale  to  assert  that  98  per  cent,  of  the 
grafted  vines  are  growing  today,  where,  if  cuttings  hai  been  planted, 
•scarcely  one-half  would  have  lived.  In  many  cases  by  actual  measure- 
ment, the  canes  are  ten  feet  in  length,  and  bunches  of  grapes  weighing 


98  (iRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

three  and  a  half  pounds  each  have  been  picked  from  this  vineyard. 
From  80  acres  about  25  tons  of  grapes  will  be  realized  this  season,  and 
when  it  is  taken  into  consideration  that  these  vines  have  received  no 
water  whatever,  their  condition  proves  conclusively  that,  in  the  right 
soil,  fruit  can  be  produced  without  irrigation.  This  soil  is  no  exception, 
as  there  are  many  hundreds  of  acres  of  land  in  the  Pomona  Valley  that 
likewise  need  no  irrigation  whatever. —  [Pomona  Progress,  August  20 
.1885.] 

MR.  PACKARD'S  LETTER. 

PROF.  E.  W.  HILGARD,  Berkeley,  Col. : 

DEAR  SIR  :  In  response  to  your  request  I  now  send  to  you  a  copy  of 
the  Pomona  Progress,  giving  a  description  of  the  appearance  of  my 
Californica  vineyard.  I  will  also  make  a  brief  memoranda  of  the  de- 
tails of  my  method  of  grafting  them.  I  will  here  state  that  I  grafted, 
last  spring,  about  seventy-five  thousand,  and  have  now  a  percentage  of 
loss  of  about  two  per  cent,  of  that  number. 

First,  the  vines  were  cutoff'to  within  three  or  four  inches  of  the  ground, 
and  the  brush  hauled  away ;  second,  the  land  was  plowed,  the  soil  be- 
ing thrown  from  the- vines;  third,  grafting  commenced  February  10, 
about  three  weeks  before  the  vines  started.  For  grafting  I  worked  my 
men  in  sets  of  about  thirteen,  as  follows  :  One  man  to  shovel  dirt  from 
the  vine ;  one  man  to  saw  vine  at  the  surface,  or  one  inch  below  the 
surface  of  the  ground  ;  three  grafters — regular  hands,  who  had  never  put 
in  a  graft  until  they  commenced  this  job  ;  one  man  following  to  wax  the 
union,  who  used  a  brush  and  wax  pot;  and,  finally,  seven  men  to  shovel 
the  dirt  to  the  vine,  covering  the  gratt  to  the  top  bud.  All  workmen  except- 
ing the  grafters,  were  Chinamen.  Each  gang  grafted  eighteen  hundred  to 
two  thousand  per  day.  Varieties  grafted  :  Burger,  Zinfandel,  Mataro,  and 
Golden  Chasselas.  All  have  made  a  magnificent  growth.  Commencing 
grafting  February  18,  I  substantially  finished  three  weeks  after  that  date 
— having  something  like  ten  thousand  remaining,  which  were  finished 
up  by  two  or  three  men  by  April  1,  when  the  vines  were  in  leaf.  I  can 
see  no  material  difference  either  in  percentage  of  loss  or  in  growth  be- 
tween the  early  and  the  late-grafted.  The  method  used  was  a  cleft 
graft  for  the  larger  vines — say  all  larger  than  your  little  finger.  For 
the  smaller  ones  a  tongue  graft  was  used,  and  a  great  many  were  grafted 
which  were  not  larger  than  a  lead  pencil.  I  find  that  the  latter  are 
doing  as  well  as  any  of  the  larger  ones.  As  a  matter  of  experiment, 
one  of  my  men  cut  the  top  of  a  vine  off  below  a  point  where  the  roots 
branched  out,  and  inserted  four  Mataro  grafts  in  as  many  small  roots. 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  9i) 

These  four  grafts  are  growing  now,  thus  proving  that  it  is  unnecessary 
to  graft  in  the  crown. 

I  will  mention  the  after-work  when  the  grafting  was  finished.  The 
field  looked  like  a  multitude  of  anthills  at  that  time,  on  account  of  the 
<lirt  thrown  up  to  the  scion.  I  then  plowed  the  land  crosswise,  throw- 
ing the  dirt  to  the  vine.  Then,  as  soon  as  the  union  of  scion  and  vine 
was  strong  enough,  I  cut  the  vine  away,  leaving  one  standard  only? 
which  I  tied  up.  The  "anthills"  were  leveled  down,  exposing  the  roots 
on  the  scion,  which  were  cut  off;  and,  as  the  union  is  at  the  surface, 
they  cannot  form  a  new,  and  the  vine  must  be  supported  by  the  Cali- 
fornica  root  alone.  The  misses  which  I  have  I  find  to  be  almost  invari- 
ably due  to  the  fact  that  the  scion  was  set  with  its  sap  veins  entirely 
outside  of  that  in  the  root,  and  as  a  matter  of  course  such  failed  to  grow. 
I  used  a  great  many  lateral  cuttings  with  an  abundance  of  pith  ;  they 
all  grew,  however. 

Of  course,  I  used  a  great  deal  of  care  in  keeping  my  scions  in  the  best 
possible  condition ;  they  were  never  allowed  to  get  into  a  position  where 
they  would  dry  out  or  injure  in  any  other  way.  If  there  are  any  other 
points  in  regard  to  this  matter  which  you  desire  to  know,  I  will  furnish 
them  to  you  with  pleasure. 

JOHN  E.  PACKAKD. 

POMONA,  October  2,  1885. 

The  above  statement  of  Mr.  Packard's  experience  with 
Californica's  grafts  is  reproduced  here,  not  as  an  example 
of  what  may  ordinarily  be  expected,  but  of  what  may  occur 
under  extraordinarily  favorable  conditions.  Its  publication 
called  forth  at  the  time  from  Professor  George  Husmann,  the 
well  known  writer  on  viticulture,  the  following  communica- 
tion, which  was  published  in  Bulletin  46  of  the  College  of 
Agriculture  : 

TALCOA  VINEYARDS,  NAPA,  October  24, 1885. 
Professor  E.  W.  HILGARD,  State  University,  Berkeley,  California: 

DEAR  SIR  :  As  you  desire  reports  about  resistant  vines,  and  grafting 
thereon,  I  will  give  a  short  resume  of  my  experience  here  on  perhaps 
the  most  difficult  and  varied  piece  of  ground  to  be  found  in  the  State, 
being  "spotted"  with  tough  adobe,  hard  pan  alkali,  poor  stony  soil,  and 
rich  alluvial  lands,  and  therefore  a  harder  and  more  severe  test  for  them 
than  is  ordinarily  found. 


100  GRAPE  CULTURE    AND 

k 

The  new  vineyards  at  this  place,  comprising  about  150  acres,  were 
planted  by  me  mostly  in  1882.  The  varieties  planted  were  for  imme- 
diate bearing:  Lenoir,  Herbemont,  Cynthiana,  Rulander,  and  Norton's- 
Virginia,  all  cestivalis  varieties;  and  for  grafting,  about  10,000  wild 
riparia  seedlings,  15,000  Clinton,  and  some  few  thousand  each  of  other 
rip<tria  varieties,  such  as  Elvira,  Missouri  Riesling,  Taylor,  Uhland, 
Amber,  Pearl,  Marion,  etc.  Each  variety  runs  in  most  instances  from 
one  end  of  the  vineyard  to  the  other,  thus  getting  the  benefit  or  disad- 
vantage, as  the  case  may  be,  of  a  variety  of  soils.  In  another  piece  of 
land  we  planted  rupestris  cuttings  the  same  season,  which  also  have 
about  the  same  diversity  of  t-o'ils.  1  find  a  great  difference  in  growth 
on  the  different  soils,  the  most  vigorous  being  on  the  alluvial  and  adobe,, 
the  poorest  on  the  hardpan  alkali.  This  may  be  considered  applicable 
to  all  varieties  planted,  although  the  Herbemont  seems  to  grow  and 
succeed  best  on  all  soils.  A  piece  of  about  an  acre  of  the  last  named 
variety,  planted  in  1881,  has  been  in  partial  bearing  for  two  years,  has 
always  set  its  fruit  well,  and  ripened  evenly.  The  same  was  the  case 
this  year,  when  it  bore  a  very  heavy  crop,  many  of  the  vines  producing 
40  to  50  pounds  each,  and  ripening  their  fruit  evenly  and  well,  the 
must  showing  24°  on  Balling's  scale  on  the  fifth  day  of  this  month- 
All  the  cetstibates  varieties,  however,  need  a  6-foot  stake,  and  long  prun- 
ing on  canes  or  arms,  to  show  their  full  bearing  capacity.  The  same 
may  be  said  of  the  Rulander  or  St.  Genevieve,  which  set  well  and  bore 
a  splendid  crop  on  three-year  old  vines,  must  showing  2(5°  Balling  the 
twenty-eighth  of  September,  when  we  picked  them.  The  Lenoir, 
Norton's,  and  Cynthiana  set  but  a  very  light  crop,  owing,  as  I  think,  to 
the  high  winds  which  prevailed  here  all  summer.  They  ripened  early 
in  September,  Lenoir  showing  27°,  Norton's  30°  Cynthiana  32°  Bailing* 
the  must  being  of  an  exceedingly  dark  color,  purplish  black.  All 
promise  to  make  very  fine  wines,  and  as  the  vines  are  yet  too  young 
to  show  their  full  bearing  capacity,  1  hope  for  a  better  yield  next  year. 

In  the  spring  of  1884  we  grafted  what  was  strong  enough  of  the  wild 
riparia,  and  the  riparia  varieties,  although  from  the  difficulties  pre- 
sented by  the  soil  already  mentioned,  we  had  a  very  uneven  stand. 
Our  method  was  common  cleft  grafting,  and  has  been  described  before 
We  grafted  on  the  wild  riparia  seedlings  as  follows:  Sultana,  Green 
Hungarian,  Sauvignon  Vert,  Marsanne,  and  Franken  Riesling  (Syl- 
vaner).  A  part  of  the  last  two  varieties,,  five  rows,  were  grafted  on, 
Elvira,  running  parallel  through  the  blocks  with  the  riparia.  The 
great  majority  of  the  grafts  took  well,  made  a  firm  junction  and  a  very 
strong  growth  Avhere  the  vines  were  on  favorable  soil,  but  on  the  El- 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  101 

vira  the  success  was  rather  more  uniform  and  the  growth  stronger  than 
on  the  wild  riparia.  The  balance  of  our  grafts  were  mostly  on 
Clinton,  which  proved  a  much  mere  satisfactory  stock  than  I  had  an- 
ticipated, being  in  that  respect  as  good  as  the  wild  riparia,  and  taking 
the  graft  readily.  The  grafts  on  Clinton  were  Herbernont,  Lenoir, 
Pedro  Ximenes,  Chauche  Gris,  Traminer,  Rulander  or  Gray  Clevner 
Petit  Pinot,  Gamay  Teinturier,  Mataro.  and  Grossblaue.  The  Taylor 
although  a  very  strong  grower,  does  not  seem  to  take  the  graft  as  read- 
ily as  the  three  varieties  named  before,  as  our  success  was  not  as  uni- 
form and  satisfactory. 

The  grafts  produced  some  fruit  last  year,  were  pruned  for  bearing 
last  winter,  according  to  their  strength,  and  most  of  them  bore  very 
heavily,  with  a  great  difference,  however,  in  the  same  variety  where 
they  were  exposed  to  the  full  force  of  the  wind  or  sheltered  by  the 
hillside,  the  latter  producing  more  than  double.  The  yield  was  espec- 
ially heavy  on  Green  Hungarian,  Marsanne,  Sauvignon  Vert,  and 
Mataro.  In  a  good  many  instances  we  gathered  30  to  40  pounds 
of  Marsanne  and  Green  Hungarian  from  a  single  graft,  and  the  growth 
of  wood  for  next  year's  crop  is  also  strong  and  well  ripened.  The  junc- 
tion is  so  complete  that  it  is  hardly  perceptible  now,  and  the  whole  oper- 
ation is  a  complete  success.  The  bunches  were  very  large  and  heavy, 
and  the  berries  full  size  and  of  excellent  quality,  as  a  number  of  visitors,. 
Messrs.  E.  II.  Rixford  and  Wickson  among  them,  can  testify.  Our 
wines,  made  from  each  variety  separately,  are  fully  fermented,  and 
many  of  them  clear  now.  When  the  time  comes  I  shall  take  great 
pleasure  in  sending  you  samples  of  them  for  tasting  and  analysis. 

I  am  fully  satisfied  that  instead  of  losing  time  by  planting  resistant 
vines  and  grafting  them,  the  grafts  will  bear  more  and  earlier  than  the 
same  varieties  would  do  on  their  own  roots,  on  account  of  the  increased 
vigor  caused  by  the  stronger  growth  of  the  stock. 

As  to.  the  alleged  inferiority  of  the  fruit  and  wine  from  such  grafts, 
it  seems  too  ridiculous  for  any  one  at  all  familiar  with  the  laws  govern- 
ing horticulture,  and  the  influence  of  the  stock  on  the  scion,  to  need 
refutation.  In  the  case  of  grafts  on  vines,  I  have  found,  during  a  prac- 
tice and  observation  of  thirty-five  years,  that  a  stronger  stock  also  im- 
parts a  more  vigorous  growth  of  wood  ;  and  we  all  know  that  the  more 
vigorous  the  tree  or  plant  the  larger  and  more  perfect  will  be  its  fruit 
That  such  stronger  growth  also  requires  longer  pruning  to  equalize  the 
strength  of  the  root  and  top  is  self-evident,  but  I  have  yet  to  learn  that 
our  growers  would  object  to  the  increased  yield  resulting  therefrom. 
In  rny  opinion,  the  greatest  perfection  of  the  grape  depends  upon  hav. 


102  GRAPP:  CULTURE  AND 

ing  just  as  much  to  bear  each  season  as  it  can  ripen  in  perfection.  If 
we  overload  it,  inferior,  insipid  fruit  will  be  the  result,  and  a  feeble 
growth  of  wood,  which  will  also  not  ripen  fully.  If,  on  the  contrary, 
we  prune  too  short,  a  rank,  succulent  growth,  black  knot,  con  lure,  etc., 
will  be  the  result,  and  the  fruit  will  also  suffer  accordingly.  On  this 
nice  balancing  of  the  powers  of  the  vine  more  of  the  success  of  the 
vintner  depends  than  many  are  aware  of. 

That  resistant  vines  planted  on  soil  of  ordinary  fertility  are  and  will 
be  a  success  I  am  confident  beyond  a  doubt.  That  thousands  of  acres 
have  been  planted  to  vines  in  this  State  which  are  entirely  unfit  for  re- 
sistants  or  any  other  vines  I  am  also  convinced ;  and  the  sooner  our 
people  learn  that  even  a  grapevine  will  not  grow  in  waste  and  barren 
places,  too  poor  to  produce  even  sagebrush,  the  better  it  will  be  for  the 
industry. 

Yours  sincerely, 

GEORGP:  HUSMANN. 

Loss  or  Gain  of  Time  of  Grafting. — While  I  am  fully  in 
accord  with  Professor  Husmann  in  respect  to  most  of  the 
points  made  in  the  above  communication,  and  believe  that 
the  grafting  on  resistant  stock  should,  and  in  fact  must  with- 
in a  comparatively  short  time,  become  the  rule  instead  of  the 
exception  in  California,  yet  I  think  his  broad  statement  that 
instead  of  losing  time  in  bringing  a  vineyard  into  bearing 
time  will  be  gained  by  grafting  requires  material  restriction. 
I  think  the  average  experience  will  be  found  to  be  that  there 
is  a  loss  of  one  year,  or  thereabouts,  when  a  vineyard  is 
grafted  instead  of  being  allowed  to  bear  directly  from  the 
cuttings,  and  that  on  the  large  scale  the  cases  of  gain  in  time 
will  be  very  exceptional. 

In  the  first  place,  it  would  be  difficult  to  find  a  more  vig- 
orous and  early-bearing  stock  than  the  Zinfandel  grape,  which, 
were  it  resistant,  could  be  recommended  as  a  grafting  stock 
for  its  exceptional  advantages  in  these  respects.  I  doubt 
that,  in  the  case  of  this  vine,  even  the  Calif ornica,  grafted 
successfully  the  first  year  from  the  seed,  would  distance  it ; 
so  that  when  this  grape  or  others  of  similar  habits  are  in  ques- 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  103 

tion,  grafting  on  any  other  stock  could  be  recommended  only 
as  a  matter  of  precaution  against  the  phylloxera.  But  in  the 
case  of  varieties  of  weak  growth,  it  may  readily  happen  that 
a  genuine  gain  of  time  is  secured  by  grafting  on  a  vigorous 
grower  like  the  Calif orhica  or  the  kinds  mentioned  above  by 
Professor  Husmann. 

Proportion  of  Successes  to  Failures  of  Grafts,— Moreover, 
it  is  altogether  exceptional  to  find  so  large  a  percentage  of 
success  in  grafting  as  reported  by  Mr.  Packard,  above.  '  A 
loss  of  ten  per  cent,  of  the  grafts  made  must  ordinarily,  I 
think,  be  considered  a  very  favorable  result;  it  will  more  fre- 
quently amount  to  between  twelve  and  twenty  per  cent, 
varying  not  only  according  to  the  skill  of  the  grafters,  but 
very  largely  depending  upon  the  condition  of  the  grafts  used, 
and  upon  the  weather  following  the  operation;  also,  to  a  not 
inconsiderable  degree,  upon  the  nature  of  the  soil.  The  in- 
fluence of  the  latter  becomes  apparent  from  the  fact  that  vine 
grafting  must  be  done,  either  several  inches  below  the  surface 
of  the  ground,  or,  if  done  at  or  near  the  surface,  the  soil 
must  afterwards  be  piled  up  around  the  graft  for  protection 
against  drying  out.  In  the  case  of  an  adobe  soil,  in  which 
the  water  may  remain  near  the  surface  for  several  days  after  a 
rain,  the  intrusion  of  muddy  water  into  the  cleft  or  cut,  and 
a  consequent  weakness  of  the  junction  and  even  risk  of  fail- 
ure to  unite,  may  take  place.  Hence,  as  such  soils  when  in 
good  tilth  retain  moisture  very  strongly,  I  incline  to  think 
that  in  them  the  grafting  is  best  done  within  one  or  two 
inches  of  the  surface,  the  piling  up  of  the  earth  around  the 
graft  being  relied  on  to  prevent  drying.  With  the  same  view, 
my  personal  experience  inclines  me  to  favor  late  *  rather 
than  very  early  grafting,  because  then  the  free  flow  of  sap 
from  the  stock  keeps  the  graft  in  good  heart. 

*"Late"  as  regards  the  stage  of  development  of  the  leaves,  hut  not 
necessarily  late  in  the  season. 


104  GRAPE  Cl'LTVRE  AND 

A  great  deal,  however,  depends  upon  the  condition  of  the 
grafts  at  the  time  the  operation  is  performed.  When  fully 
dormant,  they  are  of  course,  slower  in  coming,  but  less  liable 
to  injury  from  accidents  of  season  than  when  somewhat  ad- 
vanced. In  the  latter  case  it  may  happen  that  moist  weather 
following  the  grafting  will  push  the  buds  too  fast,  before  the 
stock  has  united  sufficiently  to  fully  support  their  growth, 
causing  the  buds  to  leaf  out,  and  then,  for  want  of  proper 
support,  die  back  to  the  main  stem.  From  this  condition 
the  majority  may  recover,  but  &  considerable  percentage  will 
fail  to  do  so,  or  put  forth  but  a  weakly  growth,  leaving  the 
grafter  to  lament  a  loss  of  twenty  per  cent,  when,  within  a 
week  after  grafting,  it  appeared  as  though  not  one  would  fail 
to  grow.  If  in  this  case  the  weather  had  been  less  fav- 
orable to  rapid  growth  —  that  is,  dry  and  cool  rather  than 
moist  and  warm  —  the  loss  would  undoubtedly  have 
been  much  smaller,  as  the  growth  of  the  scion  would  then 
have  kept  pace  with  the  ability  of  the  stock  to  supply  the  sap 
through  a  well  formed  callus. 

While,  then,  a  somewhat  advanced  condition  of  the  scions 
—  a  swelling  of  their  buds  prior  to  grafting  —  may  result  very 
favorably  when  the  grafting  is  done  late,  it  involves  a  risk 
which  is  not  incurred  when  they  have  been  kept  fully  dormant. 

Loss  of  Stocks  from  Graft  Failures. — The  grafting  of  a 
vine  stock,  as  usually  done,  is  a  very  severe  operation  for  the 
plant.  Were  the  graft  not  inserted  so  as  to  afford  the  stock 
ready-made  buds  for  leaf-development,  a  great  many  of  the 
weaker  stocks  would  never  be  seen  above  ground  again,  as 
they  mostly  are  through  the  formation  of  "adventitious 
buds,"  from  which  "suckers"  sprout  abundantly.  When 
these  suckers  are  persistently  removed  to  the  end  of  the 
growing  season,  very  few  stocks  will  retain  life  enough  to 
sprout  the  next  year.  The  majority  will  be  killed  by  the  ex- 


WINE-MAKINO  IN  CALIFORNIA.  105 

haustion  consequent  upon  the  repeated  effort  to  grow,  unaided 
by  the  restorative  action  of  the  leaves. 

While,  therefore,  the  common  practice  of  removing  the 
first  and  even  the  second  crop  of  suckers  is  a  proper  rule,  in 
order  to  throw  the  sap  into  the  scion  as  much  as  possible,  yet 
so  soon  as  it  is  definitely  apparent  or  probable  that  the  graft 
will  fail,  the  "suckering  "  should  be  stopped,  in  order  to  insure 
a  vigorous  stock  for  regrafting  the  following  season.  From 
personal  experience  I  am  inclined  to  think  that  the  necessity 
of  close  suckering,  in  order  to  make  the  graft  "take/3  is  com- 
monly somewhat  over-estimated;  and  that  few  grafts  will  fail 
altogether  because  the  removal  of  the  sprouts  from -the  stock 
is  omitted  after  the  second  time.  From  comparative  obser- 
vations on  grafts  treated  differently  in  this  regard,  I  incline 
to  think  that  allowing  the  sprouts  to  grow  will  often  so 
strengthen  a  dormant  stock  that  it  will  push  the  scion  into 
life,  when,  had  the  sprouts  or  suckers  been  removed,  stock, 
scion  and  all  would  have  perished. 

But  with  the  most  careful  treatment,  and  taking  into  due 
consideration  the  fact  that  a  dead  stock  involves  for  its  re- 
placement a  loss  of  two  or  three  seasons,  while  a  stock  whose 
powers  have  been  judiciously  husbanded  may  be  successfully 
regrafted  the  following  year,  yet  a  certain  percentage  of  loss 
will  thus  take  place,  involving  the  replanting  of  a  cutting  or 
seedling.  This,  with  the  graft  failures,  defers  the  completion 
of  a  full  "stand,"  and  counts  in  the  matter  of  delay  in  bring- 
ing a  grafted  vineyard  into  full  bearing. 

Considering  the  advantages  to  be  gained  by  grafting  on 
vigorous  resistant  stocks  in  regions  menaced  by  the  possible 
importation  of  the  phylloxera,  one  season's  delay  (which  I 
think  should  be  looked  for  by  those  who  graft)  should  not  de- 
ter any  one  from  taking  this  needful,  and  with  proper  care  as 
to  adaptation,  ultimately  profitable  precaution. 

Crop  from   Grafts  of  the  Same    Season. — When    bearing 


106  ({RAPE  CULTURE  AND 

wood  is  used  for  scions  grafted  upon  vigorous  stocks,  a  crop 
will  generally  be  borne  the  same  season,  sufficient  to  give 
some  insight  into  the  adaptation  of  the  grape  varieties  to  the 
local  climate.  The  crop  will,  of  course,  be  belated.  If  it 
matures  well,  nevertheless,  it  is  positive  proof  that  it  will  do 
so  still  better  when  older;  the  berries  will  have  less  sugar  and 
more  acid  than  in  succeeding  years.  If,  nevertheless,  these 
amounts  are  fairly  satisfactory,  it  will  convey  the  assurance 
that  when  older  the  vines  will  yield  a  good  product.  It  need 
hardly  be  added  that  the  older  the  stock  the  more  nearly  the 
results  so  obtained  approach  the  average  result  of  future  years; 
yet  excessive  bearing  of  grafts  should  not  be  permitted,  in  or- 
der to  avoid  weakening  so  as  to  spoil  the  "good  half  crop" 
that  may  be  expected  the  second  year. 

Propagation  of  the  Resistant  Stocks. — Experiments  on  this 
important  subject  were  made  at  the  University  some  years 
ago,  and  the  results  were  published  in  October,  1885,  in 
Bulletin  No.  34  of  the  College  of  Agriculture.  The  stocks 
experimented  on  were  the  wild  species  riparia,  ccstivalis^  Cal- 
ifornica,  and  Arizonica,  being  those  deemed  of  the  greatest 
importance  at  the  time.  The  following  is  the  report  of  Mr. 
W.  G.  Klee,  then  head  gardener  of  the  agricultural  grounds, 
on  this  branch  of  work : 

In  a  previous  report  (1882)  an  account  was  given  of  some  experi- 
ments in  growing  wild  grapevines  from  seed,  as  also  of  the  influence  of 
carbon  bisulphide  upon  the  cuttings  disinfected  by  means  of  its  vapor. 
It  was  deemed  desirable  to  institute  comparative  experiments  on  the 
facility  with  which  the  native  Californian  and  Arizonian  vines  can  be 
grown  from  cuttings.  For  the  sake  of  farther  comparison,  cuttings  of 
the  summer  grape  ( Vitis  cestivalis)  and  of  the  Northern  and  Southern 
Hi  verside  grapes  (Vitis  riparia  and  •  cordifolia  respectively)  were  also 
planted  under  precisely  similar  circumstances.  All  the  cuttings  'were 
taken  from  vines  growing  in  the  garden  of  economic  plants;  and  with- 
out exception,  wholly  of  the  previous  season's  wood,  which  was  very 
thin,  being  on  the  average  not  more  than  one-sixth  inch  in  diameter. 

The  cuttings  were  all  made  about  the  same  time,  viz :  at  the  end  of 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  107 

December,  1883  ;  and  were  cut  eight  to  nine  inches  long.  Soon  after 
they  were  put  under  ground  in  a  shady  place,  and  there  remained  until 
planting  time. 

The  soil  of  the  nursery  bed  being  rather  heavy  loam,  its  condition 
was  improved  by  a  heavy  dressing  of  barnyard  manure,  and  with  the 
subsequent  addition  of  fifty  pounds  of  quicklime  to  an  area  of  20x30 
feet,  or  about  1.72  part  of  an  acre. 

At  the  beginning  of  April  the  bed  was  deeply  dug  with  forks,  and 
on  April  6  the  cuttings  were  planted,  some  sand  being  spread  in  the 
bottom  of  the  trench  to  facilitate  rooting.  Drills  were  placed  18  inches 
apart,  and  cuttings  4  to  6  inches  in  the  row,  two  eyes  being  left  above 
the  ground,  the  lower  one  just  at  the  surface. 

The  Vitis  riparia  was  the  first  to  start,  and  was  followed,  in  eight  or 
ten  days,  by  the  Arizonica;  the  Californica  being  the  last,  fully  three 
weeks  after  the  riparia,  and  starting  quite  slowly.  The  (estivalis  started 
a  trifle  sooner  than  the  last  mentioned. 

During  the  season  (which,  as  will  be  remembered,  was  quite  a  moist 
one)  the  bed  did  not  receive  any  watering,  but  was  kept  clean  and  well 
worked. 

Small  as  these  cuttings  were,  their  growth  has  been  very  good,  and 
as  shown  in  the  table  below,  a  large  percentage  of  all  the  varieties 
rooted  ;  each  kind  exhibiting  its  peculiar  habit  of  growth. 

The  riparia,  which  started  first,  was  also  the  first  to  stop,  the  leaves 
all  turning  yellow  at  the  end  of  September.  The  Arizonica,  at  the 
same  time,  showed  signs  of  having  made  all  its  growth,  but  kept  a  good 
green  color;  while  the  Californica  still  continued  to  grow  vigorously. 
The  same  order,  precisely,  was  observed  in  the  4-year  old  vines  from 
which  the  cuttings  had  been  taken,  so  that  it  doubtless  represents  fairly 
the  respective  habits  in  this  climate. 

The  bed  at  the  time  presented  an  interesting  sight ;  the  riparia  with 
its  long  spreading  canes  and  fading  color  contrasting  strikingly  with 
the  bush-like,  uptight  habit  of  the  Arizonian  vine,  and  both  with  the 
running  but  more  robust  habit  of  the  Californian.  The  leaves  of  the 
latter  only  yielded  to  frost  and  remained  on  the  canes  until  spring. 
The  Arizonica  dropped  them  soon  after  the  first  frost. 

The  following  table  shows  at  a  glance  the  main  points  in  the  growth 
of  the  several  species: 


108  GRAPH (TLTrKK    AND 


NAME. 

Per  Cent,  of 
Cuttings 
Growing. 

Average 
Length  of 
Canes- 
Feet. 

Diameter  at 
Root  Crown-- 
Inch. 

Vitis  riparia               

95 

3  1-2 

3-8ths 

Vitis  Arizonica 

97 

20 

o-16ths 

Vitis  Californica    

85 

30 

7-16ths 

Vitis  sestivalis  ... 

85 

2.0 

:Uo4-ll>ths. 

Tlte  roots  of  the  cuttings  exhibit  the  same  striking  differences  observed 
in  the  seedlings  of  the  same  species.  The  Californian  vine  has  by  far 
the  most  vigorous  roots,  as  well  as  the  smallest  number,  and  these  strike 
directly  downwards.  The  roots  of  the  Arizonica  are  next  in  vigor, 
.and  also  strike  straight  downwards,  but  are  much  tougher  in  texture. 
The  riparia  has  a  great  profusion  of  roots,  but  of  a  much  more  spread- 
ing habit,  apparently  seeking  to  remain  near  the  surface — a  habit  it  al- 
ways retains  when  older,  and  to  which  its  early  starting  may  in  part  be 
due.  The  cestivalis,  although  apparently  the  smallest  and  weakest 
grower,  yet  developes  a  powerful  root  system,  with  a  more  downward 
tendency  than  the  riparia,  and  in  deep  soils,  or  where  roots  can  pene- 
trate deeply  into  the  substratum,  it  should  do  well.  Its  roots  are,  dur- 
ing the  first  few  years,  stronger  in  proportion  to  the  top  than  is  the 
•case  with  any  of  the  other  species  tested,  and  this  speaks  strongly  in  its 
favor  for  use  as  a  grafting  stock. 

As  it  is  in  many  cases  of  importance  to  be  able  to  distinguish  the 
canes  of  the  several  wild  species  from  each  other,  I  call  attention  to  the 
distinctive  characters  afforded  by  the  configuration  of  the  pith  at  the 
nodes  or  eyes,  when  a  joint  is  cut  lengthwise;  a  subject  to  which  atten- 
tion was  first  called  by  the  late  Dr.  Engelmann,  and  of  which  examples 
referring  to  Eastern  species  are  figured  in  the  Bushberg  catalogue  for 
1884.  In  these  figures  the  pith  of  the  riparia  shows  at  the  node  a  thin 
cross  partition;  in  the  cordifolia  or  Southern  riverside  grape,  this  parti- 
tion is  quite  thick.  In  the  Southern  Muscadine  or  Scuppernong  grape 
{  V.  vulpina)  the  partition  is  entirely  absent ;  while  present,  in  varied 
forms,  in  all  other  American  species,  The  difference  between  the  V. 
Californica  and  Arizonica  in  respect  to  the  partition  is  almost  precisely 
the  same  as  that  between  the  cordifolia  and  riparia,  and  will  serve  to 
distinguish  the  cuttings  from  each  other;  the  cross  partition  in  the  Ar- 
izonica being  quite  thin.  Figures  are,  of  course,  needed  to  illustrate 
these  points  more  exactly,  but  when  once  noted  they  are  easily  recog- 
nized. 

W.  G.  KLKE. 


WINE-MAKING    IN  CALIFORNIA.  109 

The  above  record  of  observations  made  by  Mr.  Klee  are  confirmed 
by  the  experience  of  others,  had  during  the  past  season.  As  regards, 
first,  the  rooting  of  Californicu  cuttings,  the  same  percentage  result  as 
to  success  is  reported  by  Messrs.  Coates  &  Tool  of  Napa,  who  state  that 
while  they  have  had  little  success  with  cuttings  from  wild  vines, 
they  are  well  satisfied  with  the  outcome  from  cuttings  made  from  cul- 
tivated Oalifornica  stocks.  Mr.  J.  H.  Wheeler  reports  similar  success; 
The  same  seems  to  be  true  of  the  Arizonica,  which  was  at  first  reported 
to  root  with  great  difficulty.  It  is  true  that  the  season  of  1884  was 
an  unusually  favorable  one  for  the  rooting  of  cuttings;  but  in  the  nur- 
sery the  same  conditions  can  be  artificially  kept  up  at  any  time;  and 
in  1885  the  results  were  as  good  as  in  1884. 

Of  the  above  varieties  the  riparia  is  the  one  of  which  the  cut- 
tings can  unhesitatingly  be  planted  directly  in  the  vineyard  ; 
the  Arizonica  is  next  ;  while  the  rest,  including  the  rupestris, 
should  preferably  be  rooted  in  nursery.  It  is  true  that  the  per- 
centage of  successful  rooting  of  Arizonica  is  in  the  above  table 
practically  the  same  as  that  of  the  riparia;  but  the  extreme  thin- 
ness of  the  cuttings  of  the  former  renders  them  so  much  more 
delicate  in  handling  that  only  experienced  hands  could  be 
trusted  with  planting  them  in  the  vineyard,  and  from  the 
same  cause,  their  vitality  is  easily  injured  by  exposure  to 
drying-out,  such  as  is  but  too  apt  to  occur  in  the  wholesale 
method  of  planting. 

From  what  I  have  seen  of  the  growth  and  habits  of  riparia 
seedlings,  I  should  not  incline  to  their  use  in  preference  to 
cuttings,  on  account  of  their  delicacy  and  extremely  slow 
development.  It  is  quite  otherwise  with  the  Californica,  of 
which  even  very  small  seedlings  grow  very  readily  and  rapidly, 
and  are  very  tenacious  of  life  under  very  adverse  circumstan- 
ces. In  regard  to  the  latter  point,  I  state  that  in  my  own 
planting,  a  bundle  of  about  two  hundred  moderately  sized  seed- 
lings were,  by  the  carelessness  of  a  workman  left  exposed  in  an 
open  field,  with  only  a  doubled  jute  sack  to  cover  them  from 
the  sunshine,  which  prevailed  quite  hotly  during  at  least  half 
of  ten  days  during  which  they  remained  in  this  position.  • 


110  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

When  discovered,  some  of  the  smaller  ones  on  the  outside  of 
the  bundle  were  completely  dried,  but  the  majority  were  only 
somewhat  wilted,  and  fully  80  per  cent  of  them  lived  after 
planting  in  the  nursery.  This  tenacity  of  life  is  a  strong 
recommendation  for  the  seedling  Calif  arnica,  as  most  likely 
to  insure  a  full  stand,  even  under  conditions  that  would 
seriously  diminish  the  percentage  of  success  with  even  the 
most  easily  rooted  cuttings. 

Differences  in  the  Earliness  of  the  Several  Stocks. — An  im- 
portant point  of  which  the  exact  influence  cannot  yet  be  fore- 
seen, but  which  deserves  serious  consideration,  is  the  relative 
earliness  of  the  several  resistant  stocks.  However  little  the 
stock  may  specifically  influence  the  character  of  the  fruit,  it  is 
probable  that  one  and  the  same  grape  variety  grafted  on  the 
riparia  on  the  one  hand  and  on  the  Calif  arnica  on  the  other, 
would  be  materially  influenced  in  the  earliness  of  its  start  in 
spring,  as  well  as  in  the  maturity  of  its  fruit,  by  the  roots 
upon  \yhich  they  are  severally  dependent  for  the  rise  of  the 
sap.  The  rupestris  is  even  a  more  extreme  case  than  the 
riparia,  for  this  spring  it  has  started  on  an  average  at  least 
one  week  in  advance  of  the  riparia  on  the  same  soil,  making 
possible,  according  to  Mr.  Klee's  estimate,  a  difference  of 
nearly  four  weeks  as  between  Californica  and  rupestris.  In 
my  vineyard  at  Mission  San  Jose,  the  actual  difference  this 
season  has  been  about  three  weeks. 

This  consideration  becomes  very  serious  in  relation  to 
damage  from  frost,  which  would  be  likely  to  be  much  greater 
on  riparia  roots  than  on  those  of  the  Californica.  Again,  as 
regards  the  ripening  of  grape  varieties  which  it  would  be  desir- 
able to  blend,  and  which  yet  ripen  too  far  apart  in  time  to 
be  fermented  together,  it  might  be  practicable  to  retard  the 
one  and  advance  the  other  by  judicious  selection  of  the  stock, 
so  that  both  should  ripen  nearly  or  quite  at  the  same  time. 
Similarly  it  might  be  feasible  to  make  the  same  grape  variety 


WINE-MAKING  IN    CALIFORNIA.  Ill 

come  in  at  two  or  more  different  times,  so  as  to  diminish  the 
rush  of  its  vintage,  and  enable  us  to  use  it  for  grape  blends, 
in  different  combinations  which  otherwise  would  not  be  pos- 
sible until  after  fermentation.  Excellent  opportunity  for 
observations  on  these  points  will  be  presented  at  Mission  San 
Jose  during  the  season  of  1887.  Thus  far  the  present  sea- 
son's experience,  and  that  of  others  who  have  had  opportun- 
ity for  comparative  observation,  does  not  tend  to  show  as 
great  a  difference  as  might  have  been  looked  for. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

GRAFTING    THE    VINE. 

I  hardly  need  call  attention,  after  the  foregoing  chapter,  to 
the  importance  of  this  operation,  on  which  so  much  of  the 
success  of  our  vineyards  depends.  But  it  is  not  alone  the 
advantage  it  gives  us  in  transforming  a  non-resistant  vine  into 
a  resistant  one.  Its  advantages  are  manifold,  and  may  be 
summed  up  as  follows  : 

1.  The  facility  by  which  new  and  rare  varieties  may  be 
rapidly  increased,   by  grafting  on    old,   healthy    vines,  often 
making  a  growth  of  from  10  to  20  feet  the  first  season. 

2.  The  short  time  it  takes  to  fruit  new  and  untried  varie- 
ties, as  the  grafts,  if  strong  enough,  will  bear  a  few  bunches 
the  first  season,  and  nearly  a  fuli  crop  the  second. 

8 


112  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

3.  The  facility  by  which   vines  of  worthless  or    inferior 
varieties  can  be  changed  into  valuable  bearing  vines  of  supe- 
rior fruit. 

4.  Varieties  which  will  not  grow  readily  from  cuttings  will 
generally  graft  easily,  and  can  thus  be  propagated  faster. 

5.  Most  important  of  all,  it  gives  us  the  means  to  success- 
fully combat  the  phylloxera,  as  we  can   change  a  non-resis- 
tant vine  into  a  resistant  one,  by  grafting  on  a  resistant  root 
near  or  above  the  surface;  or  by  reversing  the  case,  grafting 
eight  or  ten  inches   below   the  ground   resistant   cuttings  on 
non-resistant   roots,    when   the   scion   will    take   root   at   the 
junction,  thus  transforming  itself  into  a  resistant  vine  in  time; 
while    the  stock  will  furnish  the   sustenance  temporarily,  to 
make  it  grow  rapidly  and  vigorously. 

All  these  advantages  are  so  great  that  they  will  be  obvious 
to  any  one.  Being  convinced  of  its  importance,  we  will  now 
consider  when  and  how  the  operation  should  be  performed. 
I  shall  not  try  to  worry  and  confuse  my  readers  with  many 
complicated  methods,  but  only  mention  a  few  of  the  sim- 
plest. Although  the  vine  may  not  graft  with  the  same  ease 
as  some  other  fruits,  as  the  cambium  and  inner  bark  of  the 
vine  is  very  thin,  yet  it  presents  no  serious  difficulties,  and 
if  properly  performed,  from  75  to  90  per  cent,  of  the  grafts 
wjill  grow. 

First,  as  to  the  proper  time.  Although  it  may  be  done  in 
this  State  as  early  as  February;  yet,  if  the  scions  are  left  dor- 
mant, I  would  rather  wait  until  April  or  even  May,  although 
this  will  vary  with  the  seasons  and  location.  If  the  sap  is 
flowing  rapidly  at  the  time,  no  matter  ;  the  junction  will  be 
formed  all  the  more  readily,  provided  it  is  done  rapidly  and 
well,  so  as  to  avoid  exposure  to  the  air  in  stock  or  scion.  A 
lot  of  grafts  were  put  in  by  me  the  first  week  in  April  this  sea- 
son. As  I  was  called  away  by  business,  I  could  not  finish  un- 
til ten  days  later,  and  a  few  vines  of  new  varieties  were  grafted 


IN  CALIFORNIA.  113 

still  ten  days  later  than  these.  Strange  to  relate,  the  last 
started  first,  the  second  lot  next,  and  the  first  last  of  all. 
At  the  present  date.,  June  28,  many  of  the  grafts  have  made  a 
growth  of  seven  feet,  and  show  from  three  to  nine  bunches  of 
fruit.  These  are  Marsanne,  grafted  on  four-year-old  Char- 
bono,  Yinifera  on  Yinifera.  This  may  serve  as  an  illustra- 
tion, About  90  per  cent,  of  the  second  and  third  lot  are 
growing;  of  the  first,  about  75  per  cent.,  and  only  now 
starting  into  vigorous  growth.  All  the  scions  were  kept  dor- 
mant, by  being  buried  in  a  shady  place. 

Next,  as  to  the  proper  choice  of  the  scions.  This  I  consider 
very  important.  The  scion  should  be  of  medium  sized,  short 
jointed,  firm  wood,  with  well  developed  buds,  and,  of  course, 
well  ripened.  The  large  canes  are  inconvenient,  and  gener- 
ally too  loose  and  pithy  in  their  texture  to  make  good  scions, 
while  the  small  wood  has  generally  only  a  single  bud,  which 
is  easily  rubbed  off  and  therefore  liable  to  fail.  About  the 
size  of  a  common  lead  pencil  will  be  best,  though  somewhat 
larger  scions  may  be  used  on  heavy  vines,  and  smaller  ones 
on  correspondingly  small  vines.  Here  the  good  sense  of  the 
.grafter  is  the  best  guide,  and  a  little  practice  will  soon  make 
perfect. 

As  to  the  b'est  methods,  they  will  all  succeed;  if  they  fulfill 
one  great  requisite,  perfect  union  of  the  inner  bark  in  stock 
.and  scion.  As  this  is  thicker  on  large  stocks  than  on  small 
ones,  and  comparatively  thicker  on  stock  than  scion,  it  be- 
comes self  evident  that  the  scion  should  be  set  deeper  below 
the  rough  outer  bark  of  the  large  stock,  than  the  comparatively 
thin  bark  of  a  small  one.  With  these  few  general  hints,  I  will 
.now  describe  a  few  of  the  simplest,  an.d  most  common  as 
well,  as  most  successful  methods. 


114 


GRAPE  CULTURE    AND 


COMMON    CLEFT    GRAFTING. 

This  is  done  by  cutting  off  the  stock  horizontally,  at  some 
smooth  place  below  the  crown  or  the  ground.  I  prefer  to 
have  about  an  inch  of.  smooth  wood,  above  a  node  or  joint  in 
the  vine.  The  reason  for  this  is,  that  the  cleft  of  the  stock 
ought  to  be  about  an  inch  long, 
and  in  splitting,  the  intervening 
node,  (or  whorl  of  roots)  will 
prevent  it  from  splitting  farther, 
as  it  will  then  close  well  around 
the  graft.  Now  split  the  stock 
longitudinally,  with  a  sharpknife, 
chisel,  or  pruning  shears.^  In 
grafting  stocks  not  larger  than 
an  inch  in  diameter,  I  use  the 
shears  for  both  the  horizontal 
and  longitudinal  cut,  as  on  these, 
I  insert  but  one  scion;  I  choose 
the  smoothest  side  for  its  inser- 
tion, keeping  the  blade  of  the 
shears  on  the  side  where  the  scion  is  to  be  inserted.  (Fig.  6.) 
This  will  prevent  bruising  of  the  bark.  Then  I  prepare  the 
scion.  With  a  sharp  knife,  I  cut  a  simple  wedge  (Fig.  7.) 
beginning  at  an  eye  or  beed,  and  cutting  a  long  sloping  cut 
toward  th?  middle,  and  a  similar  one  on  the  opposite  side. 
The  side  of  the  wedge  should  be  thickest  at  the  eye,  and 
thinner  toward  the  other  side.  Now  open  the  cleft  where  you 
wish  to  insert  the  scion,  and  push  it  down  firmly  until  the 
bud  is  even  with,  or  just  above,  the  upper  surface  of  the 
stock,  taking  care  to  fit  the  inner  bark  of  the  scion  closely  to 
that  of  the  stock.  If  the  stock  is  large  it  may  require  a  small 
iron  wedge  to  open  it,  bent  to  one  side,  (Fig.  8.)  and  to 
insert  two  scions,  one  on  each  side.  If  the  operation  is 


FIG.  6. 


WINE-MAKING    IX  CALIFORNIA. 


115 


FIG.  7. 


116  GRATE  CULTURE  AND 

performed  below  the  ground,  as  is  generally  the  caser  and 
the  stock  is  strong  enough  to 
hold  the  scion  firmly,  no  bandage 
is  necessary.  A  little  moist  earth, 
pressed  upon  the  cut  of  the  stock 
and  around  the  wound,  is  all 
the  sealing  it  needs.  But  if  the 
stock  is  small,  it  ought  to  be  firmly 
tied  with  raphia,  or  strands  of  rice 
straw,  as  found  in  the  matting 
around  tea,  which  makes  a  very 
good  bandage.  Draw  the  cut 
firmly  together,  and  wind  the 
wrapping  around  the  stock  evenly 
until  the  whole  cleft  is  covered.  FIG. 

I  generally  take  three  buds  to  the  scion.  If  above  ground,  it 
ought  to  be  waxed,  that  is  the  whole  cut:  covered  with  graft- 
ing wax  of  some  kind,  to  exclude  the  air. 

A  variation  of  this  method  is.  to  make  a  slanting  cut  in 
the  side  of  the  stock,  downwards  to  the  middle,  then  cut 
your  scion  to  a  simple  wedge  as  above,  and  push  it  down  on 
one  side,  so  as  to  join  the  bark  of  the  stock.  This  has  the 
advantage  that  the  stock  need  not  be  cut  off,  in  case  the 
scion  does  not  unite  with  it,  and  as  the  fibres  of  both,  the 
scion  and  the  stock,  are  cut  transversely,  the  pores  join  bet- 
ter. As  soon  as  the  scion  starts,  cut  off  the  stock  above  it^ 
taking  caTe,  however,  not  to  disturb  the  scion  in  the  operation. 

Another  common  method  is  the  so  called  English  cleft,  or 
splice  graft,  (Fig.  9)  especially  applicable  to  smaller  stocks,. 
when  the  stock  is  not  much  larger  than  the  scion.  A  sloping, 
transverse  cut  is  made  on  a  smooth  place  of  the  stock,  up- 
wards, and  a  similar  one  on  the  scion  downwards,  then  a 
split  is  made  longitudinally,  from  the  middle  of  the  transverse 
cut ;  in  the  stock  downwards,  upwards  on  the  scion  ;  and 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  117 

the  upper  wedge  of  the  scion,  thus  formed,  is  pushed  into 
the  slit  on  the  stock,  until  both  fit  close- 
ly, and  the  lower  end  or  lap  of  the  scion 
rests  closely  upon  the  lower  bark  of  the 
stock.  Here  also,  care  must  be  taken, 
that  the  inner  bark  of  stock  and  scion 
fit  well.  It  is  then  bandaged  as  the 
cleft  graft. 

A  modification  of  this  is  the  so  called 
Champin  graft,  called  so  from  its  inven- 
tor, Aime  Champin,  but  I  cannot  see  that 
it    is  superior  in    any    way    to    common 
FIG.  9.  splice  grafting. 

There  are  a  great  many  other  methods,  as  saddle  grafting, 
grafting  by  approach,  inarching,  etc.,  but  I  wish  to  confine 
myself  to  only  the  simplest  and  most  generally  successful. 

This  is  the  "modus  operandi;"  now  for  its  practical  appli- 
cation in  the  vineyard. 

In  grafting  in  this  State,  we  generally  have  one  or  the 
other  of  the  following  objects  in  view,  viz. : 

1.  Changing  worthless  vines  into  something  more  valuable. 

2.  Grafting  noble  vinifera  vines  on  resistant  stocks,  to  in- 
sure them  against  phylloxera. 

3.  Grafting  the  most  valuable  resistant  vines,  for  immedi- 
ate bearing,  on  non-resistant  stocks. 

We  will  commence  with  No.  i  and  suppose  a  case  of  a 
four-year-old  vineyard  of  Mission  or  Malvasia,  to  be  con- 
verted into  Semillion  or  Petit  Syrah.  Choose  your  scions  as 
indicated  before,  then  graft  them  under  ground,  at  the  first 
smooth  place  you  can  find.  I  would  cleft  graft  these,  or  use 
the  modification  of  side  grafting,  as  mentioned  before.  Di- 
vide your  labor  as  follows:  Let  one  man  dig  away  the  earth 
from  the  vine,  until  he  comes  to  a  smooth  place,  then  saw  or 
cut  off  the  vine  about  an  inch  above  a  node  or  whorl,  also 


118  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

making  the  longitudinal  cut.  The  grafter  follows,  cutting  the 
scions  and  inserting  them.  He  can  carry  his  tools  in  a  bas- 
ket, for  greater  convenience,  keeping  the  scions  in  a  moist 
•cloth,  and  ought  to  be  the  most  careful  one  of  the  lot,  for 
on  him  depends  the  success  mostly.  A  third  follows,  press- 
ing moist  earth  on  the  top  of  the  stock  and  around  the  cut, 
and  then  filling  up  with  finely  pulverized  earth  to  the  top 
of  the  scions.  If  large  enough  to  hold  the  scions  firmly,  the 
stocks  need  not  be  tied;  if  small,  they  should  be;  if  very 
large,  two  scions  ought  to  be  inserted,  one  on  each  side  of 
the  stock.  I  need  hardly  mention  that  care  $hould  be  taken 
not  to  move  the  scion  in  tying. 

We  come  now  to  the  second  case  in  point,  grafting  a 
young  resistant  vineyard  with  non-resistant  vines.  In  this 
case,  we  will  suppose  the  vines  two  or  three  years  old,  from 
half  an  inch  to  an  inch  in  diameter.  These  we  can  graft 
above  or  below  the  surface,  as  we  may  choose.  Grafting  be- 
low the  surface  no  doubt  will  be  more  successful,  as  there  is 
not  so  much  danger  of  drying  out.  Still  this  can  be  over- 
come in  a  measure,  by  making  a  false  surface  ;  that  is,  by 
making  a  mound  of  earth  above  the  ground,  and  around  the 
graft,  and  there  is  certainly  less  danger  in  removing  suckers 
to  disturb  the  graft,  so  that,  on  the  whole,  the  advantages 
may  be  evenly  balanced.  In  any  case,  we  select  a  smooth 
place  for  insertion,  as  before  described,  and  either  cleft  or 
splice  graft;  for  larger  stocks,  I  prefer  the  first,  for  smaller 
stocks  the  latter.  If  grafting  below  ground,  and  a  force  of 
six  men  is  at  command,  they  can  be  utilized  as  follows:  One 
to  dig  around  the  vine,  to  take  away  the  soil  to  a  smooth 
place  ;  another  to  follow  with  a  sharp  pair  of  pruning  shears 
to  cut  the  stocks  horizontally  and  longitudinally,  to  receive 
the  graft.  If  the  cut  is  made  somewhat  transversely  across 
the  fibers,  so  much  the  better,  as  it  will  increase  the  chances 
of  a  union.  This  can  also  be  modified  by  leaving  the  stock, 


WIXK-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  119 

making  only  the  transverse  or  slanting  cut,  as  described  be- 
fore. One  cuts  the  scions,  for  which .  purpose  he  needs  a 
very  sharp,  thin-bladed  knife  ;  a  good  budding  knife  is  about 
the  best  that  can  he  had.  A  fourth  inserts  the  scions,  which 
should  be  kept  moist,  not  wet,  by  wrapping  in  a  piece  of  moist 
cloth  ;  the  fifth  ties,  with  raphia,  basswood  bark,  or  rice 
straw,  taking  care  to  wrap  the  whole  cut  smoothly  and  evenly; 
and  the  sixth  covers  up,  first  pressing  a  little  moist  earth  on 
the  cut,  and  then  filling  up  around  the  scion  to  the  upper 
bud,  making  a  small  mound  around  it.  This  division  of 
labor  has  the  advantage  that  each  hand  has  to  perform  only 
one  single  and  very  simple  operation,  which  he  can  soon 
learn  to  do  to  perfection,  and  that  even  very  common  hands 
can  be  used  for  the  first  and  last  operations.  Nos.  2,  3,  4 
and  5  ought  to  be  the  most  careful  hands,  as  is  obvious,  but 
any  good,  handy  man  can  soon  learn  these  to  perfection. 

It  will  be  easily  seen  how  this  can  be  varied  by  grafting 
above  or  just  at  the  surface.  This  will  save  the  labor  of  dig- 
ging around  the  vine,  but  increase  the  "  mounding  up " 
around  it.  .  In  this  case  I  think  that  bandages  and  grafting 
wax  should  be  used,  which  one  could  apply  with  a  brush  after 
the  scion  is  inserted,  over  the  surface  of  the  stock,  and  over 
the  side  on  which  the  scion  is  inserted,  covering  the  whole 
place  of  union.  If  the  one  who  ties  follows  closely,  the 
bandage  will  hold  more  firmly  on  the  grafting  wax.  A  very 
good  wax  for  the  purpose  is  composed  as  follows  :  Two- 
thirds  rosin,  one-sixth  beeswax,  one-sixth  tallow,  melted  to- 
gether and  applied  warm,  not  hot.  It  must  not  be  hot 
enough  to  burn  the  finger.  A  very  convenient  preparation 
is  made  of  shellac,  dissolved  in  alcohol,  say  i  Ib.  shellac  in 
a  quart  of  alcohol.  This  can  be  applied  cold,  and  is  always 
ready  for  use. 

3.  Grafting  on  non-resistant  vines  with  the  best  of  resis- 
tants,  to  establish  the  graft  on  its  own  roots. 


120  GRAPK CULTURE  AND 

To  do  this,  we  ought  to  graft  as  far  below  the  surface  as 
we  can  without  injury  to  the  vine,  so  as  to  secure  its  whole 
strength  to  push  the  graft,  until  established  on  its  own  roots. 
The  only  object  I  see  in  it  here,  is  to  multiply  such  varieties 
rapidly  as  are  valuable,  either  for  their  fruit  or  for  their  wood 
for  propagating.  Of  the  first,  there  are  but  two  which  I 
should  consider  of  sufficient  value  for  wine  making  :  the 
Herbemunt  and  Rulander,  also  perhaps  Louisiana,  which  has 
not  been  so  fully  tried,  or  a  few  of  the  Labruscas  for  table 
use,  referred  to  before.  For  the  latter  purpose,  the  Cunning- 
ham and  any  other  of  the  resistants,  of  which  it  may  be  de- 
sirable to  grow  a  large  amount  of  wood  for  propagation. 
Any  strong  and  otherwise  worthless  Vinifera  vines  may  be 
used  as  stocks,  the  ground  dug  away  as  deep  as  advisable, 
to  just  above  the  first  whorl  of  strong  roots,  the  vine  sawed 
off,  say  \yz  inch  above  the  node,  and  one,  two,  or  even 
more  scions  inserted,  according  to  the  strength  of  the  vine. 
The  cut  will  heal  over  quicker  when  more  scions  are  put  on, 
and  if  some  of  them  should  be  superfluous,  they  can  be  cut 
off  afterwards.  Cleft  grafting  will  be  most  practical  here,  and 
the  scions  should  be  long  enough  that  the  upper  bud  is  above 
the  surface  of  the  ground.  No  tying  will  be  necessary. 
Then  fill  up  with  finely  pulverized  soil,  pressing  it  firmly  over 
and  around  the  cut,  to  the  top  bud  of  the  scions.  If  the 
scions  have  good,  strong  fruit  buds,  you  can  have  the  pleasure 
of  tasting  their  fruit  that  summer.  A  Herbemont,  grafted 
by  me  on  a  strong  Isabella  vine  in"  spring  of  1852,  produced 
two  canes  of  26  feet,  and  one  of  30  feet  long,  ripening  nine 
•perfect  bunches  of  fruit  besides,  the  same  summer. 

.   AFTER  TREATMENT  OF  THE  GRAFTS. 

It  will  generally  take  some  time  before  they  begin  to  grow, 
as  a  firm  union  must  take  place  first,  before  the  scion  will  be 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  121 

in  a  condition  to  grow  vigorously.  Do  not  get  discouraged 
if  the  majority  of  the  scions  do  not  show  any  progress  for  a 
month,  for  those  which  start  so  early  generally  wilt  back  and 
do  not  amount  to  much.  I  have  had  grafts  to  start  in  Au- 
gust, and  make  a  very  satisfactory  growth.  As  long  as  the 
scion  is  fresh  and  green,  it  shows  that  it  receives  sustenance 
from  the  stock,  and  may  start  at  any  time.  They  should  be 
examined  from  time  to  time,  as  the  suckers  from  the  old 
stocks  may  intefere  with  their  growth,  and  just  as  soon  as 
.these  appear  they  should  be  removed,  by  digging  down  to  the 
place  from  where  they  start  and  taken  off  clean,  for  if  any 
part  of  them  remains  they  will  throw  up  four  or  five  in  place 
of  one.  The  suckering  should  be  done  twice,  at  least,  tak- 
ing care,  however,  not  to  disturb  the  grafts;  once  at  about  a 
month's  time  from  grafting,  and  the  other  at  about  two 
months;  the  remainder,  if  any  appear,  may  be  pulled  up 
easily  at  any  time. 

As  soon  as  the  young  growth  on  the  grafts  appears,  they 
should  be  staked,  putting  the  stake  on  the  side  from  which 
the  prevailing  wind  blows.  As  the  young  shoots  are  very 
succulent  and  tender,  they  are  very  easily  blown  off  by  the 
wind,  and  should  be  tied  as  soon  as  six  inches  to  a  foot  high.. 
If  the  stocks  are  strong,  they  will  grow  with  astonishing  rapid- 
ity, and  twelve  to  fifteen  feet  of  growth  is  very  common.  I 
generally  leave  all  their  laterals  and  pinch  off  the  leader  when 
it  has  reached  the  top  of  the  stake,  which  will  make  them 
grow  more  stocky.  If  on  strong  vines,  they  will  generally  be 
ready  to  bear  nearly  a  full  crop  the  following  summer,  so  that 
there  will  be  little,  if  any,  loss  of  time.  They  should  not 
be  tied  too  close,  so  as  to  give  them  room  to  expand,  only 
to  offer  the  proper  resistance  to  the  wind,  with  some  soft 
material,  either  with  strips  of  the  Phormium  Tenax  (New 
Zealand  Flax)  recommended  and  distributed  by  Prof.  Hil- 


122  GRATE  CULTURE  AND 

gard,  or  Dracaena  and  Yucca  leaves  split  into  strips,  of  which 
I  shall  speak  more  at  length,  in    "tying  the  vine." 

In  France,  there  is  a  good  deal  of  grafting  done  in  the  shops, 
or  in  nursery.  I  have  tried  repeatedly  to  graft  young  vines  in 
the  shop  in  winter^  as  is  done  so  much  with  fruit  trees,  but 
never  had  success  enough  to  induce  me  to  recommend  it.  It 
seems  that  they  need  a  strong  and  vigorous  flow  of  sap,  to 
unite  well,  and  that  this  is  too  tardy  in  the  transplanted  vine  to 
make  a  good  union.  If  cuttings  or  seedlings  are  planted  in 
nursery,  not  too  close,  and  grafted  the  following  spring,  this 
may  do  very  well.  They  ought,  in  that  case,  remain  in  the 
nursery  until  next  spring,  or  winter,  and  then  transplanted 
at  once  to  the  vineyard.  This  would  be  valuable  to  filll  va- 
cancies especially.  But  on  the  whole  I  much  prefer  grafting 
in  vineyard.  The  cultivation  of  the  grafts  will  be  similar  to 
that  of  other  vines,  and  therefore  need  not  be  discussed  here. 

HERBACEOUS    OR    GREEN    GRAFTING. 

This  is  a  good  deal  practiced  in  Hungary,  and  is  strongly 
recommended  by  that  eminent  practical  grape  grower,  and 
writer  on  viticultural  matters,  Herman  Goethe,  Director  of  the 
oenological  institute  at  Marburg,  to  whom  we  owe  some  of  the 
best  books  on  Viticulture  we  possess  in  the  German  language. 
It  is  rather  a  supplement  to  spring  grafting,  and  would  be  of 
great  value  in  many  respects,  if  it  can  be  made  successful,  al- 
•so  for  grafting  in  nursery  during  the  summer.  It  would  be 
easy  in  this  case,  to  graft  the  suckers  of  such  vines  as  may 
have  failed  to  grow,  and  thus  make  the  stand  complete  the 
first  year.  But  after  a  trial  of  two  seasons,  I  fear  it  will  not 
prove  successful  here,  as  very  few  of  the  grafts  united,  but 
nearly  all  wilted  off.  I  think  that  our  summers  are  too  dry 
at  the  period  at  which  it  ought  to  be  performed,  in  June,  to 
make  it  practicable.  This  may,  however,  be  overcome  in  a 
certain  measure  by  grafting  close  to  the  surface,  filling  around 


WINE-MAKING  IN    CALIFORNIA.  123 

the  junction  with  earth,  to  the  upper  bud  of  the  scion,  and 
then  watering  it,  so  as  to  keep  it  moist.  For  the  benefit  of 
those  who  wish  to  try  it,  I  will  describe  and  illustrate  it  here, 
quoting  from  Prof.  Goethe's  valuable  Pamphlet  "die  Reben- 
verdelung  "  (Grafting  of  the  Grape). 

"For  over  fifty  years  a  method  of  grafting  has  been  practiced 
near  Funfirchen,  in  Hungary,  and  also  in  other  districts, 
which  has  been  called  green  or  herbaceous  grafting,  because 
the  soft  green  shoots  of  the  vine  are  used  for  the  operation. 
It  was  practiced  mostly  to  change  single  vines  in  vineyards 
that  were  of  an  indifferent  variety,  into  such  desirable  varie- 
ties as  composed  the  greater  part,  or  to  change  whole  vine- 
yards into  better  varieties.  But  it  may  now  become  of  still 
greater  importance,  if  we  apply  it  to  protect  our  European 
varieties,  by  grafting  on  resistant  American  stocks,  against  the 
attacks  of  the  phylloxera, .and  it  has  already  been  successfully 
used  for  that  purpose. 

"Experience  in  grafting  all  kinds  of  plants  shows  us  that  the 
operation  is  followed  with  a  greater  degree  of  success,  when 
the  parts  to  be  united  are  yet  young  and  succulent,  than 
when  they  have  already  become  woody  and  hardened;  always 
provided  that  they  have  the  necessary  firmness  and  develop- 
ment to  be  capable  of  germination.  This  is  also  applicable 
to  the  vine,  and  if  we  have  to  record  a  good  many  failures, 
the  causes  of  them  were  mostly  either  due  to  improper  time 
or  faulty  performance  of  the  operation  itself. 

"Although  the  operation  was  fully  described  in  the  work 
of  Franz  Schams,  perhaps  the  best  informed  writer  on  the 
culture  of  the  grape  in  Hungary,  which  appeared  in  1832, 
and  although  it  has  also  been  practiced  in  other  districts  of 
Hungary,  for  instance  in  the  vineyards  around  Ofen,  where  I 
saw  its  application,  yet  it  has  not,  to  the  best  of  my  knowl- 
edge, been  introduced  into  other  provinces.  This  may  be 
owing  to  the  fact  that  most  of  the  experiments  made  with  it 


124  GUAPE  CULTURE   AND 

did  not  give  favorable  results,  and  therefore  I  applied  myself 
to  find  the  cause  of  these  failures,  and  to  learn  the  proper 
method  to  avoid  them.  I  think  that  all  are  easily  explained, 
and  the  success  of  the  operation  depends  mostly  on  a  few 
very  simple  points,  which,  however,  are  of  the  greatest  im- 
portance. If  performed  correctly  and  at  the  proper  time, 
nearly  all  the  green  grafts  will  grow,  in  Hungary  as  well  as  in 
Marburg,  and  even  the  grafts  made  by  our  students  have 
taken,  with  only  a  loss  of  from  two  to  three  per  cent. 

"As  I  have  remarked  before,  the  proper  time  is  very 
material.  In  districts  which  are  subject  to  late  frosts,  the 
work  cannot  be  performed  until  all  danger  from  them  is  past. 
Therefore  we  will  presume  that  for  most  districts  the  proper 
time  would  be  from  end  of  May  to  beginning  of  July.  But 
the  best  guide  in  this  respect  is  the  condition  of  the  young 
shoots,  The  stocks  as  wrell  as  the  scions  must  be  elastic  and 
pliable,  not  too  woody,  nor  yet  too  soft.  The  pith  of  the 
young  wood  must  be  yet  green,  not  show  the  white  tinge 
which  it  assumes  later.  Of  course,  the  buds  must  be  suffi- 
ciently developed  to  grow.  This  is  generally  the  case  at  the 
last  fully  developed  leaf.  This  will  explain  why  all  shoots  on 
a  vine  or  all  plants  in  a  nursery  are  not  in  a  proper  condition 
at  the  same  time,  and  that  only  those  should  be  selected 
which  are  sufficiently  developed  and  growing  rapidly.  Lat- 
erals with  points  that  have  already  completed  their  growth 
are  unfit  for  use.  It  is  of  the  greatest  importance  that  the 
stock,  where  it  is  to  be  grafted,  is  still  growing  and  juicy,  so 
that  we  may  expect  a  vigorous  growth. 

"  It  has  also  been  observed  that  sunny  and  warm  weather, 
when  the  vine  grows  rapidly,  is  more  suited  than  cloudy  and 
•cool  days,  when  the  vine  is  not  so  thrifty.  The  operation 
should  not  be  performed  in  the  hottest  hours  of  the  day, 
therefore  it  will  not  succeed  well  during  continued  dry 
weather. 


\VI\K-MAKIX<;   IX  CALIFORNIA.  12-") 

"The  operation  itself  is  very  simple,  as  it  is  very  similar 
to  common  cleft  grafting.  The  scion  is  cut  to  a  short  wedge 
at  a  node,  so  that  the  point  of  the  wedge  is  yet  at  the  firmer 
part  of  the  node,  and  the  upper  part  cut  off  about  half  an 
inch  above  the  bud  which  is  expected  to  grow.  The  scions 
thus  prepared  are  either  used  at  once,  which  is  perhaps  best, 
or  kept  in  water  with  their  lower  end,  but  the  water  should 
be  shaken  off  before  insertion.  The  leaf  opposite  the  bud  is 
cut  back  to  the  stem. 

"The  stock  should  be  in  about  the  same  condition  as  the 
scion,  but  may  be  somewhat  larger  than  it.  Cut  it  close 
below  an  eye  or  bud,  take  away  the  young  laterals  below, 
and  split  it  exactly  in  the  centre  down  to  the  next  node  or 
bud,  so  that  the  split  goes  down  into  the  firmer  structure  of 
the  node. 

"The  scion  is  now  inserted  so  that  the  outer  green  bark  is 
even  with  that  of  the  stock,  and  the  wedge  fits  closely  into 
the  end  of  the  split.  The  cuts  must  not  be  bruised  in  inser- 
tion, which  is  easily  prevented  by  holding  the  split  slightly 
apart.  As  soon  as  the  scion  is  properly  inserted,  the  split  is 
firmly  tied  with  cotton  twine,  especially  when  the  lower  end 
of  the  scion  is  joined  to  the  notch  of  the  stock.  The  best 
plan  is  to  commence  tying  from  above,  so  as  to  prevent  the 
scion  from  slipping  back.  See  Cut,  Fig.  10. 

"Alter  six  to  eight  days,  the  scion  will  show  very  plainly 
whether  a  junction  has  been  made,  as  in  case  of  failure  it 
is  dried  or  withered.  If  the  scion  has  taken,  the  leaf  stem 
opposite  the  bud  has  dropped  off.  As  soon  as  the  scion  begins 
to  grow,  and  the  thread  cuts  into  the  bark,  the  tie  should 
be  loosened. 

"When  herbaceous  grafting  is  applied  to  the  vines, 
it  will  be  advisable  to  have  but  one  shoot  on  each  arm,  and 
take  off  all  the  others;  if  the  vine  has  several  arms,  one  ought 
to  be  left  on  each  of  them.  Of  course  it  is  important  to  give 


126 


GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 


FlG 


the  grafts  support,  if 
they  have  taken,  by 
tying  to  stakes,  and 
they  can  be  bent 
down  later." 

(I  hardly  think  that 
this  grafting  above 
ground  will  succeed 
in  our  climate,  unless 
the  canes  or  shoots 
are  bent  into  trench- 
es and  covered  with 
earth.— G.  H.) 

"This  process 
seems  of  more  im- 
portance to  me,  how- 
ever, when  applied 
to  young  vines  in 
nursery,  as  has  been 
done  at  Marburg  in 
1878.  In  this  case, 
we  take  young  Am- 
erican vines  as  stocks 
and  graft  with  Eu- 
ro p  e  a  n  varieties. 
These  can  be  remov- 
ed to  the  vineyard  the 
following  season,  and 
'  K  X  \  wre  would  thus  have 
the  most  suitable 
vines  for  planting 
on  resistant  roots. 

"  But  whether  ap- 
plied to  old  vines  or 
in  the  nursery,  it  is 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  127 

very  important  to  take  off  all  shoots  which  may  come  from 
the  stock  below  as  soon  as  they  appear,  and  we  have  evi- 
dence that  the  graft  has  taken;  so  that  the  entire  strength  of 
the  vine  is  imparted  to  the  scion." 

This  comprises  about  the  most  important  information  from 
Professor  Goethe,  in  relation  to  green  or  herbaceous  grafting. 
As  mentioned  before,  my  experience  with  it  so  far  has  been 
discouraging,  and  I  fear  that  our  summer  weather  is  alto- 
gether too  dry.  -  But  its  advantages  would  be  so  manifold, 
that  it  well  deserves  a  thorough  trial. 

Mr.  Clarence  J.  Wetmore  has  tried  another  method  of 
grafting  in  August,  with  which  he  claims  to  have  had  uniform 
success.  We  know  that  the  vines  make  a  second  growth  in 
August,  which  may  be  sufficient  to  effect  a  junction  between 
stock  and  scion.  .  The  vine  is  grafted  in  the  usual  manner, 
below  ground,  the  scion  taken  from  the  young  but  well 
ripened  wood  of  this  year,  and  Mr.  Wetmore  claims  that  he 
loses  hardly  any,  although  the  scions  seldom  grow  much  the 
same  season.  They  merely  make  a  junction  with  the  stock, 
but  grow  readily  and  vigorously  the  next  season.  This 
method  is  also  worth  trying,  where  the  scions  may  have  failed 
in  spring. 

•  These  comprise  about  all  the  methods  of  grafting  which 
are  practicable  here,  and  we  can  close  this  very  important 
subject  with  them.  It  would  only  serve  to  confuse  the 
reader  to  name  and  describe  the  innumerable  varieties  of 
these  and  others,  and  be  of  no  practical  benefit. 

Budding  has  often  been  tried,  but  as  far  as  I  know  with 
little  or  no  success;  therefore  I  omit  it  altogether. 


128  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 


CHAPTER    IX. 

THE  VINEYARD,    LOCATION,    ASPECT  AND  SOIL. 

In  this,  preeminently  the  "Golden  "  State  it  is  said  that  we 
riave  more  of  first  class  grape  lands  than  all  of  Europe  put  to- 
gether. This  may  be  true,  but  it  is  also  true  that  but  few  of 
the  best  lands,  those  that  will  make  a  name  and  fame  for  our 
industry,  have  so  far  been  planted  in  grapes.  Those  lands 
that  could  be  planted  to  vines  with  the  least  labor,  were  the 
most  easy  of  cultivation,  and  produced  the  largest  crops;  were 
generally  chosen  and  planted.  While  I  do  not  undervalue 
easy  cultivation,  I  also  believe  that  our  rich,  level  bottom 
lands  will  never  give  us  the  wines  that  will  rank  with  the  finest 
brands  of  Europe,  or  even  surpass  them.  All  we  can  expect 
of  them  is  a  good,  sound  wine  for  the  million,  the  every  day 
drink  of  our  people,  and  while  I  admit  that  this  is  a  great 
desideratum,  yet  the  small  grower  especially  should  aim  at 
higher  quality,  which  will  make  his  wines  and  grapes  sought 
for  at  high  prices. 

Then  again,  our  lands  are  very  variable,  they  are  "spotty" 
as  we  familiarly  call  it,  to  a  very  high  degree.  It  is  seldom 
that  a  piece  of  one  hundred  acres,  or  even  ten  to  twenty,  can 
be  found  which  is  alike,  or  only  nearly  so.  The  soil  is  apt 
to  vary  from  deep,  naturally  drained  land  to  hard-pan  alkali, 
from  stony  and  pebbly  soil  to  stiff  adobe  or  clay,  and  again  to 
shallow  bedrock,  where  there  is  not  depth  of  soil  to  let  the 
vine  root  fairly,  and  develop  fully.  It  behooves  every  one 
then  to  be  careful  in  the  soil  he  selects,  and  to  look  over  it 
well  before  he  plants  it  to  vines. 

The  location  is  also  a  very  important  question.  It  should 
be  easy  of  access,  should  have  fair  transportation  facilities  by 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  129 

railroad,  or,  at  least,  a  promise  of  them  in  the  near  future, 
for  this  is  a  question  which  will  influence  the  value  of  the  pro- 
duct very  materially.  Then  the  aspect  of  the  place  itself, 
its  features,  whether  they  allow  easy  communication  and  cen- 
tralization, should  be  well  considered.  The  vineyard  should 
in  all  its  parts  be  easily  accessible  to  either  the  wine  cellar  or 
the  packing  shed.  If  these  can  be  so  located  that  all  the 
grapes  can  be  brought  down  to  them,  or  at  least  on  a  level,  it 
will  make  all  the  operations  a  great  deal  easier.  And  for  the 
wine  cellar  especially  water  facilities  are  a  great  consideration. 
If  living  water  from  streams  and  springs  is  available,  that  can 
be  led  into  every  story  of  the  cellar  and  into  every  compart- 
ment, it  is  an  advantage  which  can  hardly  be  overvalued.  It 
is  not  alone  handy  for  cleansing  casks  and  vats,  in  short,  the 
whole  working  apparatus,  but  it  makes  the  work  itself  so  much 
more  convenient  and  so  much  less  costly.  Besides,  it  adds 
greatly  to  the  coolness  and  cleanliness  of  the  place.  If  good 
material  for  building  is  at  hand  it  is  also  a  great  advantage. 
A  hillside  for  the  cellar,  into  which  it  can  be  excavated  so 
that  every  story  of  the  building  can  be  approached  by  wagon, 
is  a  great  advantage,  and  if  good  building  stone  is  at  hand 
close  to  it,  or  at  the  cellar,  it  is  worth  a  great  deal  also.  All 
'these  points  should  be  carefully  considered  before  the  land  is 
selected.  They  cut  a  Very  large  figure  in  the  expense  account. 
It  is  fortunate,  indeed,  that  our  mountains  are  blessed  with 
•so.  many  never  failing  springs  of  the  purest  water,  which  are 
.available  for  the  purpose;  and  that  good  building  stones  are 
also  by  no  means  scarce.  They  are  one  of  the  most  attrac- 
tive features  of  our  noble  State. 

When  there  is  no  spring  or  stream  available,  there  should  at 
least  be  a  good  well,  from  which  the  necessary  supply  can  be 
pumped  by  machinery.  A  wine  cellar  without  a  full  supply 
<of  water  is  a  very  poor  institution  indeed. 

There  is  another  and  serious  objection,  at  least  in  the  more 


130  GRAPE  CULTUKK  AND 

northern  part  of  the  State,  their  greater  liability  to  late  spring 
and  early  fall  frosts.  It  is  rather  unpleasant,  as  well  as  labor- 
ious, costly,  and  fatiguing  to  watch  the  thermometer  every 
cool  night,  to  see  if  it  does  not  approach  the  fatal  32°,  and 
although  I  hope  to  show  in  a  subsequent  chapter  that  frosts 
need  not  and  ought  not  to  be  as  destructive  as  is  now  sup- 
posed, yet  it  is  a  very  discouraging  thing  so  see  a  vineyard, 
beautiful  in  promise  but  the  day  before,  blackened  and  wilting 
before  that  invidious  enemy  in  the  morning.  It  is  well  known 
that  an  elevation  of  a  few  feet  is  often  sufficient  to  save  the  crop; 
therefore  gently  sloping  hillsides  should  always  be  preferred 
to  valley  lands. 

As  to  the  particular  aspect,  this  is  not  so  important  in  this 
State,  where  all  grapes  ripen  well  enough,  and  are  rich  enough 
in  sugar.  The  northern  and  northwestern  slopes,  however, 
when  not  too  steep,  generally  have  the  deepest  and  richest 
soil,  though  there  are  exceptions  even  to  this  rule.  The  tim- 
ber growing  on  the  land  is  generally  a  good  indication  of  its 
adaptation  to  vines.  Where  there  are  large  and  heavy  oaks, 
manzanita  and  madrona,  where  the  poison  oak  (rhus  toxico- 
dendron)  grows  luxuriantly,  interspersed  by  the  hillside  fern, 
and  also  in  the  red  soil  of  the  redwood  region,  where  this  no- 
ble tree,  the  fir  and  Douglass  spruce  flourish,  the  soil  is  well 
adapted  to  the  vine,  though  in  the  latter  region  also  difficult 
to  clear,  an  item  which  should  also  be  taken  into  considera- 
tion. 

Chemical  analysis  of  the  soil,  of  course,  will  show  us 
whether  that  particular  soil  is  desirable.  But  the  difficulty 
has  been  mentioned  before  under  which  we  labor  here.  Our 
soil  is  so  diversified  that  a  chemical  analysis,  unless  made  of 
every  acre  or  two,  will  not  give  us  anything  positive  to  stand 
upon  for  a  large  tract,  however  sure  it  may  be  for  the  partic- 
lar  spot  from  which  the  soil  was  taken. 

I  prefer  the  soil  to  be  light  and  friable,  although  I  have 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  131 

seen  fine  vineyards  and  excellent  wines  from  tenacious  clay  or 
adobe  soils.  Still  such  soils  are  very  difficult  to  work,  as  they 
bake  and  roll  when  wet,  and  get  very  hard  when  dry.  If  the 
soil  is  free  from  stones,  so  much  the  better,  for  stones  make 
it  disagreeable  to  work,  although  stony  soil,  if  otherwise  rich, 
will  make  fine  wines.  But  avoid  hardpan  and  alkaline  soils, 
as  they  are  not  suited  to  the  vines,  will  produce  but  little, 
and  that  little  of  inferior  quality.  It  should  not  be  too 
steep,  as  that  makes  cultivation  difficult  and  costly. 

With  these  general  hints,   I  will  shortly  sum  up  the  re- 
quirements of  as  nearly  perfect  a  vineyard  as  I  can  imagine. 

1 .  Easy  access  to  market  by  railroad  or  water,  and  from 
vineyard  to  cellar. 

2.  Gently  sloping  lands,  not  too  steep  nor  too  flat. 

3.  Abundance  of  water. 

4.  Good  location  for  cellar  and  packing  sheds,  and,  if 
possible,  good  building  stone. 

5.  Freedom  from  frosts. 

6.  Deep  and  friable  soil,  which,  for  red  wines  especially, 
should  be  rich  in  iron  and  other  minerals,  to  give  color  and 
tannin. 


CHAPTER  X. 

PREPARING    THE    SOIL. 

This  is  very  important,  especially 'in  tenacious  soils,  clay 
and  adobe,  which  should  be  deeply  stirred,  to  enable  the 
roots  to  penetrate  it.  Where  the  soil  is  naturally  loose,  it  is 


132  GRAPE   CULTURE  AND 

not  so  imperative,  although  it  is  "always  well  to  have  it  thor- 
ooghly  mixed  and  pulverized. 

Of  course,  I  take  for  granted  that  the  soil  has  been  cleared 
of  all  roots,  stumps,  stones,  etc.,  before  plowing.  When  the 
soil  has  been  thoroughly  moistened  by  rain,  so  as  to  work 
satisfactorily  without  being  wet,  put  in  a  good  team  with  a 
strong  turning  plow,  which  can  make  a  furrow  of  from  10 
to  12  inches  deep.  If  two  horses  cjnnot  do  it,  put  in  four, 
and  follow  in  the  same  furrow  with  a  subsoil  stirring  plow, 
that  will  only  loosen  the  soil,  not  turn  it.  This  ought  to  stir 
it  from  4  to  6  inches  deeper,  so  that  the  whole  depth  is  from 
14  to  1 6  inches  at  least.  Of  course  it  depends  on  the 
nature  of  the  soil  how  many  animals  ought  to  be  used,  as  it 
will  be  much  harder  of  draft  in  tenacious,  clayey  soil,  than  in. 
loose  and  friable  earth.  Where  stones,  roots,  etc.,  are 
turned  up,  they  ought  to  be  piled  up  and  taken  out;  and  it 
will  be  well  to  employ  an  extra  man  for  that  purpose,  who  can 
follow  the  plows,  and  remove  any  obstacle  they  meet  with. 

After  thus  thoroughly  loosening  the  soil,  it  should  be  har- 
rowed crosswise,  and  then  gone  over  with  a  clod-crusher  or 
drag,  to  leave  an  entirely  smooth  and  even  surface.  Remem- 
ber that  you  are  laying  the  foundation  for  work  which  is  ex- 
pected to  last  your  lifetime  and- longer,  and  rather  spend  five 
or  ten  dollars  worth  more  labor  to  do  it  well,  than  to  do  it 
poorly. 

Wet  spots  should  be  drained  by  gutters,  either  of  tiles  or 
stones.  Make  a  ditch  3%  feet  deep  by  at  least  a  foot  wide, 
setting  two  stones  on  edge,  then  laying  a  flat  one  on  top;, 
then  throw  a  layer  of  straw  over  these  and  some  loose  stones 
on  top,  filling  up  with  soil.  These  I  have  found  to  carry  off 
the  water  better  than  drain  tiles,  and  where  stones  are  con- 
venient, they  are  much  cheaper,  and  help  to  clear  the  land,, 
as  it  will  take  a  good  many  stones,  which  will  be  buried 
under  ground,  instead  of  being  obstructions  in  cultivating. 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  133 


CHAPTER    XL 

HOW    TO    LAY    OUT    AND    PLANT    A    VINEYARD. 

Every  vineyard  ought  to  have  a  main  road  or  avenue,  into 
which  all  others  lead,  and  which  should  therefore,  if  the  loca- 
tion will  permit,  be  as  near  central  as  possible.  If  the 
ground  is  rolling,  and  cut  up  by  ravines,  the  greatest  conven- 
ience in  hauling  and  carrying  will  have  to  be  consulted.  In 
ground  nearly  level,  or  gentle  slopes,  the  most  convenient 
and  economical  plan  will  be  to  lay  it  off  in  squares  of  about 
two  acres  each,  but  making  the  squares  double  as  long  as. 
they  are  broad,  to  facilitate  the  carrying  of  the  grapes,  stakes,, 
fertilizers,  if  necessary,  etc.  The  best  distance  between  the 
rows  I  consider  8  feet,  though  many  plant  7  feet,  and  even- 
closer,  while  others  contend  that  they  should  be  still  further 
apart.  Eight  feet  will  give  room  for  convenient  working, 
and  also  give  sufficient  space  to  the  roots.  It  will  take 
blocks  of  25  rows  broad  and  50  rows  long  to  make  about 
-two  acres  of  vines,  but  if  we  want  to  include  the  avenues  in 
the  measurement,  the  block  should  be  24  by  48.  The  first 
will  give  1246,  leaving  off  the  four  vines  at  the  corners,  for 
greater  convenience  in  turning,  the  latter  1148  vines  to  each 
block. 

The  next  thing  we  want  is  a  lot  of  markers;  that  is,  short, 
thin  stakes,  split  of  redwood,  say  15  to  20  inches  long,  and 
about  half  an  inch  in  diameter.  They  are  tied  in  bundles  of 
100  to  200,  and  to  make  them  more  apparent,  the  tops  can 
be  dipped  in  a  tub  of  whitewash.  This,  with  two  long  lines 
as  long  as  a  block  at  least,  or  400  feet,  and  a  short  one  to 
reach  across  the  block,  or  200  feet,  two  measuring  poles 


134  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

•8  feet  long,  and  four  men,  complete  our  equipment  for  the 
simplest  and  most  expedient  plan  for  laying  off  I  have  yet 
tried,  and  which  will  always  give  straight  lines,  if  the  avenues 
-are  correctly  marked. 

We  commence  by  establishing  the  main  avenue  or  road, 
first  running  a  straight  line  through  the  center,  if  our  piece  of 
.ground  admits  it,  in  dimension  and  nature  of  soil.  This  we 
do  by  setting  a  few  long  stakes  or  guides,  then  drawing  our 
line  from  one  to  the  other,  one  of  our  men  having  hold  at 
•each  end,  and  he  takes  a  measuring  pole  eight  feet,  or  any 
•other  desired  distance,  the  fourch  carries  a  lot  of  markers, 
putting  one  down  every  time  the  distance  is  measured,  and 
•counting.  When  twenty-five  are  counted,  the  breadth  of  a 
block,  omit  one,  measuring  sixteen  feet  to  the  next,  so  on  to 
the  end  of  the  field.  We  now  run  another  line,  parallel  with 
this,  but  sixteen  feet  from  it,  in  the  same  way,  and  this  es- 
tablishes our  main  road  or  avenue. 

We  now  measure  in  the  same  way  around  each  block,  tak- 
ing care  to  have  them  at  right  angles.  If  the  main  avenue 
runs  north  and  south,  we  run  our  next  line  below  east  and 
west,  or  the  reverse,  and  count  fifty  ;  from  there  to  north  and 
south  again,  counting  twenty-five,  and  back  to  the  main 
avenue  and  the  25th  marker.  It  is  best  to  establish  all  the 
outside  lines  of  the  blocks  first.  When  we  get  this  done,  the 
rest  will  be  comparatively  easy.  We  now  draw  a  long  line 
from  marker  2  longitudinally,  over  the  block  to  marker  2  on 
the  other  end,  also  the  other  long  line  from  marker  24  to  24 
at  the  other  end.  Two  of  our  men  now  take  the  short  line 
on  each  side  of  the  block,  holding  them  to  the  next  marker 
east,  while  the  other  two  take  .each  a  bundle  of  markers,  and 
put  them  down  in  the  angle  of  the  crossing  lines.  If  the  men 
move  lively  and  precisely,  and  take  care  to  stretch  their  line 
well,  it  can  be  done  very  fast  and  accurately.  As  soon  as 
the  marker  is  down,  they  both  move  the  line  to  the  next,  and 


WINE-MAKING    IN    ( 

so  on  until  to  the  end  of  the  block.  ThViehg  Ttmffare  then 
moved  to  Nos.  3  and  23,  and  the  same  repeated  until  the 
block  is  finished.  The  intelligent  reader  will  easily  see  how 
this  plan  can  be  varied,  according  to  circumstances,  distance 
to  be  planted,  location,  etc.  If  we  have  rooted  vines,  we 
make  holes  next,  to  receive  them.  This  is  best  done  with  a 
spade,  putting  the  spade  down  just  above  the  marker,  as  near- 
ly perpendicular  as  can  be,  taking  out  its  full  depth,  say 
twelve  inches,  and  putting  the  ground  taken  out  on  the  upper 
side  of  the  hole.  The  planter  follows  with  the  vines  in  a  pail 
partly  filled  with  water,  to  keep  the  roots  fresh.  The  roots 
should  first  be  shortened  into  a  uniform  length  with  knife  or 
shears,  and  if  resistant  plants  are  used,  which  are  to  be  grafted 
afterwards,  the  lower  buds  along  the  stem  should  first  be 
cut  out,  as  mentioned  before,  to  prevent  suckering.  In 
planting,  spread  the  roots  evenly  at  the  bottom  of  the  hole, 
giving  them  a  downward  position,  (Fig.  n),  then  fill  up  with 
well  pulverized,  moist  soil,  which  may  be  pressed  down,  but 
not  roughly  tramped,  with  the  foot.  The  top  or  head  of  the 
young  vine  should  be  even,  or  a  little  above,  the  surface  of 
the  ground,  and  come  out  close  to  the  marker. 

Any  time  during  the  winter  is  a  good  season  for  planting, 
but  the  ground  should  work  well,  be  neither  too  wet  nor  too 
dry  ;  and  if  planted  early  and  heavy  rains  follow,  the  ground 
around  the  young  vine  should  be  stirred  and  made  mellow  in 
early  spring.  I  do  not  think  there  is  much  gained  by  very 
early  planting,  as  the  ground  is  too  cold  then,  to  give  the 
young  vine  much  of  a  start.  But  we  are  often  crowded  with 
other  work  in  early  spring,  and  the  vinegrower,  to  be  success- 
ful, should  always  rather  be  ahead  than  behind  with  his  work, 
and  should  take  advantage  of  every  spell  of  fair  weather  that 
comes  to  his  aid. 

If  cuttings  are  planted,  it  may  be  done  in  the  same  way, 
only  I  would  advise  taking  two  for  each  hole,  to  avoid 


136 


GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 


vacancies.  They  can  be  placed  about  six  inches  apart  with 
the  lower  end,  while  the  tops  come  together  at  the  marker,  so 
that  one  can  be  removed,  should  both  grow.  I  do  not  think 
it  advisable,  however,  to  plant  cuttings  early  in  the  season.  I 


FlG.  11.— YOUNG  VINE  READY  TO  PLANT, 

would  rather  keep  them  heeled  in,  reversed,  as  is  described  in 
the  chapter  on  propagation,  and  plant  when  the  soil  is  some- 
what warm  already,  not  before  March  or  April.  They  will 
callus  and  root  quicker  than  if  they  are  put  into  the  cold 
ground  in  winter. 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  137 


CHAPTER  XII. 

WHAT    TO    PLANT.        CHOICE    OF    VARIETIES. 

I  need  not  repeat  here,  what  has  already  been  said  about 
resistant  roots  in  a  former  chapter.  I  would  not  plant  any 
other,  even  in  locations  not  yet  infested  with  phylloxera.  Of 
them,  the  Herbemont,  Rulander,  Louisiana,  and  perhaps 
Lenoir  may  be  used  for  direct  production.  All  the  others 
should  be  grafted  with  the  best  foreign  or  Vinifera  varieties  ; 
but  although  that  will  not  be  done  until  a  year  later,  we  may 
as  well  consider  the  question  here.  Which  are  the  best  ? 

This  is  a  knotty  problem  to  solve,  in  a  State  where  there 
are  collections  of  from  three  to  four  hundred  varieties,  which 
pass  under  one  name  in  one  locality,  and  in  the  next  vineyard 
or  valley  perhaps,  are  grown  under  another.  There  is  an  al- 
most endless  confusion  in  this  respect,  and  it  needs  great 
caution  to  get  any  variety  pure  and  true  to  name.  Yet  there 
is  nothing  more  vexing  than  such  blunders,  and  I  would 
rather  have  the  money  stolen  out  of  my  pocket  by  a  thief, 
than  to  be  thus  swindled,  whether  intentionally  or  not. 
Therefore,  be  sure  of  what  you  obtain,  and  get  it  only  of  re- 
liable men.  One  of  these  is  Mr.  H.  W.  Crabb,  of  Oakville, 
Napa  Co.  He  has  a  collection  of  nearly  four  hundred 
varieties,  and  spares  no  pains  to  have  them  correct.  Better 
pay  treble  the  price,  it  amounts  to  but  very  little  anyway,  and 
get  them  true  to  name.  The  next  consideration  is,  "  what 
do  we  want  them  for,  for  wine,  table  or  market  fruit,  or  for 
raisins  ? 

If  for  wine.,  that  again  depends  upon  locality  and  soil.  It 
is  of  no  use  to  try  and  grow  grapes  for  red  wine  on  soil  that 
will  not  give  us  color,  astringency  or  tannin,  and  fine  bouquet. 


138  GRAPE  CULTURE    AND 

To  do  this,  it  should  be  rich  in  minerals,  in  iron,  especially  ; 
and  as  enough  of  red  wine  grapes  are  planted  already  on  soil 
not  adapted  to  them,  do  not  let  us  add  still  more  to  them. 
Nor  let  us  plant  any,  red  or  white  wine  varieties,  in  soils  and 
locations  where  they  are  inclined  to  turn  into  sherry  and  port. 
To  produce  fine  light  or  dry  wines,  I  think  we  will  have  to 
confine  ourselves  to  Northern  California,  or  to  those  elevated 
regions  in  the  Southern  counties,  where  grapes  will  not  ripen 
before  September,  and  we  can  take  the  fall  months,  Septem- 
ber, October  and  even  November,  to  give  them  such  gradual 
and  moderate  fermentation,  as  will  enable  them  to  attain  that 
fine  bouquet  which  alone  will  make  them  of  permanent  value 
in  the  markets  of  the  world.  Let  each  grower  confine  him- 
self to  his  proper  sphere,  taking  advantage  of  the  indications 
which  his  surroundings  give  him,  and  make  such  a  product 
as  he  can  make  in  the  greatest  perfection,  be  this  light  wine, 
or  the  heavy  ports,  sherries,  and  sweet  wines,  or  brandies. 

Light  dry  wines  being  used  in  the  largest  quantities,  we 
will  consider  them  first.  To  make  theni,  we  want  grapes  that 
will  give. 

1.  Fine  quality. 

2.  Sufficient  quantity  to  pay  well. 

3.  Varieties  which  are  easy  in  cultivation  and  training,  or 
in  other  words,  which  will  give  the  best  returns  for  the  least 
labor. 

4.  Varieties  easy  to  handle  and  ferment  in  the  wine  cellar, 
and  which  are  most  in  demand,  commanding  a  ready  sale. 

With  these  points  in  view,  we  will  now  consider  the  varie- 
ties best  suited  to  "  fill  the  bill." 

FOR  LIGHT,   DRY,   WHITE  WINE. 

Pedro  Ximenes.  Synonyms,  Sauvignon  Vert,  White  Green 
Riesling,  Columbar  erronously.  This  is  not  a  Riesling, 
but  one  of  the  Sauterne  type  of  grapes.  It  is  a  very  strong, 


WINP>MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  139 

vigorous  grower,  a  good  bearer  with  moderately  long  pruning, 
very  healthy,  also  suffering  less  from  frost  and  coulure,  and 
will  become,  considering  all  this,  one  of  the  leading  varieties. 
Wood  brownish  gray,  dotted  with  darker  spots,  rather  long 
jointed;  buds  whitish,  prominent.  Leaf  dark  green  above, 
somewhat  rough,  light  green  below,  covered  with  gray  hairs, 
stem  of  leaf  brownish,  points  of  young  shoots  gray  and 
hairy,  tendrils  strong,  generally  divided  into  three  at  the  end. 
Bunch  long,  rather  loose,  shouldered,  with  long  medium 
sized  stems;  berry  medium,  slightly  oval,  greenish  yellow, 
translucent;  thin  skin,  very  juicy,  sweet  and  sprightly.  This 
grape  makes  a  very  sprightly,  high  flavored  and  smooth  wine, 
which  can  hear  diluting  one-fourth  in  drinking,  and  still  re- 
tain its  full  character.  It  has  a  fine  persistent  foliage,  and 
will  not  suffer  from  sunscald.  Ripens  here  in  Northern  Cal- 
ifornia about  the  end  of  September. 

Marsanne.  Synonym,  Avilloran.  This  is  another  of  the 
Sauterne  varieties,  but  of  a  stronger  flavor  than  the  former, 
therefore  it  should  be  blended  with  lighter  varieties,  such  as 
Burger,  for  instance.  Vine  a  very  vigorous  grower  and  im- 
mense bearer,  can  be  grown  on  four  foot  stakes  with  short 
pruning.  Wood  dark  gray  with  brown  spots,  growing 
nearly  straight,  rather  long  jointed.  Leaf  dark  green,  rough 
on  upper  side,  grayish  green  below,  leafstem  long  and  stout, 
green,  young  points  of  shoots,  gray  and  wooly,  tendrils  long, 
forking  into  3  to  5  points.  Bunch  large  and  heavy,  shoul- 
dered, moderately  compact  ;  stem  thick  and  long ;  berry 
rather  small,  round,  yellow,  covered  with  white  bloom,  and 
when  fully  ripe  has  a  brown  tinge  in  the  sun  ;  moderately 
juicy,  rather  thick  skin,  sweet  and  high  flavored.  A  very 
healthy  vine,  but  so  productive  that  it  is  apt  to  overbear. 
Foliage  fine  and  persistent,  never  suffers  from  sunscald, 
ripens  rather  late,  middle  of  October  here. 

Green  Hungarian.     Synonyms,  Verte  longue,  Long  Green. 


140  GRAPE   CULTURE    AND 

The  origin  of  this  grape  is  somewhat  doubtful,  but  not  its 
great  value  as  a  wine  grape.  I  received  it  from  Mr. 
Groezinger,  under  the  name  of  Green  Hungarian,  have  seen 
it  bear  for  four  consecutive  seasons,  and  think  it  a  model 
vine  in  every  respect.  Immensely  productive,  a  short  and 
stocky,  but  vigorous  grower,  splendid  foliage,  and  easy  to 
handle,  it  "  fills  the  bill  "  more  completely  than  any  other 
grape  I  know.  Its  wine  comes  nearer  to  the  Riesling  type 
than  the  Sauterne,  is  sprightly,  high  flavored,  greenish  yel- 
low, and  with  the  pleasant  piquant  acidity  of  the  Riesling, 
while  it  will  bear  three  times  as  much. 

Wood  grayish  brown,  short  jointed,  vigorous.  Young, 
growth  stocky,  green  with  brownish  veins,  furrowed.  Leaf 
heart  shaped,  but  slightly  lobed,  sharply  but  irregularly  ser- 
rated, full  as  broad  as  long,  light  green  above,  pale  green 
below,  covered  with  fine  hairs,  young  points  gray  and  tomen- 
tose  or  wooly,  tendrils  rather  thin,  with  only  one  fork. 
Bunch  long  and  heavy,  sometimes  weighing  three  pounds, 
shouldered,  compact,  with  a  stout  but  rather  short  stem  ;  the 
shoulder  often  nearly  as  heavy  and  long  as  the  main  bunch, 
which  last  often  has  a  double  point.  Berry  small,  round, 
but  often  pressed  out  of  shape,  as  they  are  so  close  on  the 
bunch,  greenish  yellow,  covered  with  white  bloom,  moder- 
ately juicy,  very  spicy  and  agreeable.  Ripens  here  about 
last  of  September. 

I  have  been  thus  minute  in  describing  it,  as  it  seems  to  be 
very  little  known,  certainly  not  half  as  much  as  it  ought  to 
be.  I  think  it  will  produce  some  of  our  finest  wines,  and  is 
fruitful  from  every  bud.  Can  be  grown  on  short  stakes,  and 
pruned  to  spurs,  and  has  produced  for  me  forty  pounds  to 
the  vine,  on  Riparia  roots,  the  second  season  after  grafting. 

ChaucJie  Gris.  Synonyms,  Gray  D'Jshia,  Greg  Riesling. 
This  is  not  a  Riesling,  but  only  called  so  erroneously  in 
Napa  Valley,  where  formerly  any  grape  with  small  compact 


WINK-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  141 

bunches  and  small  berries  was  classed  with  the  Rieslings. 
It  belongs  to  the  Burgundy  or  Klaevner  type,  and  is  very  simi- 
lar to,  but  not  identical  with,  the  German  Rulander  or  Grey 
Klaevner,  It  is  a  stronger  grower  and  more  productive,  with 
larger  bunches  and  berries,  though  not  of  as  high  quality. 
However,  it  is  a  truly  fine  grape,  an  abundant  bearer  with 
long  pruning,  though  sometimes  subject  to  coulure,  and 
makes  a  very  fine  wine,  if  not  allowed  to  get  over  ripe,  or 
fermented  with  some  grape  of  lighter  quality  and  a  more 
sprightly  acid. 

Vine  a  strong  upright  grower,  with  straight  brown  wood. 
Leaf  dark  green  above,  lighter  green,  somewhat  downy  below, 
medium  size,  deeply  lobed,  young  shoots  green,  points  of 
shoots  grey,  tinged  and  edged  with  carmine,  tendrils  slender, 
three  pronged.  Bunch  compact,  mostly  shouldered,  short, 
strong  stem;  berry  small  to  medium,  pale  red  or  grayish,  cov- 
ered with  gray  bloom,  slightly  oblong;  skin  rather  thick, 
moderately  juicy,  high  flavor.  It  ripens  suddenly  about  the 
end  of  September,  and  should  be  taken  when  not  higher 
than  25°  Balling,  when  it  will  make  a  much  more  sprightly 
wine  than  when  over  ripe.  In  the  latter  case  it  is  sluggish  in 
fermentation  and  apt  to  give  trouble,  unless  fermented  with 
some  lighter  variety. 

Sf million.  Synonym  Colombar.  This  is  one  of  the  cele- 
brated French  varieties,  a  combination  of  it,  the  Sauvignon 
blanc  and  Muscadelle  de  Bordelais  make  the  famous  wine  of 
Chateau  Yquem.  It  seems  to  do  well  here,  with  long  prun- 
ing, and  certainly  makes  fine  wine  by  itself.  Wood  grayish, 
strong  and  straight,  leaf  medium  size,  downy,  lobed,  wavey 
and  irregular.  Bunch  medium,  seldom  shouldered,  but 
broad,  moderately  compact  ;  berry  medium,  slightly  oblong, 
greenish  yellow,  very  thin  skin,  transparent,  very  juicy  and 
sprightly,  high  flavor.  Young  shoots  green,  with  grayish 
points.  Ripens  here  the  first  week  in  October,  and  makes  a 


142  GRAPE   CULTURK   AND 

very  delicate,  high  flavored,  and  sprightly  wine,  of  greenish 
yellow  color. 

Tramenir.  Synonym,  rother  Klaevner.  This  is  not  a  very 
productive  variety,  although  a  fair  bearer,  but  it  brings  pretty 
sure  crops,  and  the  wine  is  of  such  superior  quality,  which  it 
will  impart  to  other  lighter  wines,  that  it  ought  to  be  in  every 
vineyard,  if  only  a  few  acres.  Vine  a  moderate  grower,  wood 
short  jointed,  thin,  grayish  brown,  changing  to  ashy  gray, 
hairy,  buds  whitish  gray.  Leaves  small,  round,  thin,  often 
broader  than  long,  dark  green  above,  light  green  below, 
hairy  and  downy,  stem  of  leaf  reddish,  points  of  young 
shoots  grayish  white,  with  very  small  leaves.  Bunch  small, 
compact,  sometimes  shouldered;  stem  short  and  brown; 
berry  small,  oblong,  or  oval,  pale  red  with  gray  bloom,  skin 
thick,  moderately  juicy  and  very  sweet  and  .spicy,  ripens 
about  end  of  September  here.  Like  the  Chauche  Gris,  to 
which  it  is  closely  related,  but  superior  in  quality,  it  ought 
not  to  hang  until  over  ripe.  The  noblest  wine  I  have  seen 
in  this  State  yet  was  made  from  this  grape. 

Sultana.  This  is  perhaps  not  suited  to  all  localities,  and 
should  not  be  planted  when  there  is  danger  from  late  spring 
frosts,  as  the  vine  starts  early.  Yet  it  makes,  in  northern 
California,  a  very  fine  wine,  and  as  it  is  a  very  abundant 
bearer,  with  long  pruning,  and  the  berries  are  seedless,  it  is  a 
very  profitable  grape,  as  it  can  also  be.  used  for  choice  raisins. 
Vine  is  a  strong  grower,  brown,  long  jointed  wood.  Leaf, 
thin,  bright  green  above,  lighter  green  below,  smooth  and 
shining,  deeply  lobed  and  sharply  serrated;  young  wood  dark 
green,  points  greyish  brown,  tendrils  at  every  joint,  thin  and 
slender.  Bunch  very  large  and  loose,  shouldered;  berry 
small,  round,  golden  yellow,  covered  with  light  bloom,  sweet 
and  juicy,  firm  and  crackling,  without  seeds.  Ripens  here 
end'  of  September,  and  makes  a  very  delicate  wine  of  straw 
color,  great  body,  and  acquiring  with  age  a  natural  sherry  flavor. 


\V1NE-MAK1NG    IN     CALIFORNIA. 


Riesling.  True  Riesling,  Johannisberg  Riesling.  This 
and  the  following  are  hardly  productive  enough  to  be  classed 
with  foregoing  varieties,  but  we  can  hardly  omit  them,  as 
their  superior  qualities  for  wine  make  them  indispensable  in 
every  vineyard.  The  Riesling  has  given  to  the  Rhenish 
wines  their  high  reputation  for  delicacy,  sprightliness,  and 
the  high  bouquet  which  has  made  them  known  and  famed 
throughout  the  civilized  world.  Vine  moderately  vigorous, 
wood  straight,  light  brown,  speckled  with  white  and  darker 
spots,  short  jointed.  Leaf  rather  small,  round,  thick  and 
rough,  deeply  lobed,  grayish  green  above,  light  green  below, 
with  yellow  spots  here  and  there;  leaf  stem  thick,  reddish, 
with  rough  warts,  points  of  shoots  and  small  leaves  yellowish 
green,  wooly,  with  faint  reddish  tinge.  Bunch  small,  com- 
pact, short  thick  stem.  Berry  small,  round,  light  yellow, 
with  black  dots,  transparent  ;  when  fully  ripe  tinged  with 
brown  ;  skin  thick,  juice  sweet,  very  aromatic  and  high  fla- 
vored, ripens  first  of  October. 

This  vine  needs  long  stakes  or  trellis,  and  long  pruning  to 
canes,  and  is  then  apt  to  lose  a  large  part  of  its  crop  by  coul- 
ure,  or  imperfect  setting.  It  is  therefore  not  a  very  profitable 
grape,  but  like  the  Traminer,  deserves  a  place  in  every  vine- 
yard to  make  a  superior  product. 

Franken  Riesling.  Sylvaner,  Oesterreicher.  This  is  a 
somewhat  better  bearer  than  the  foregoing,  though  it  is  also 
subject  to  coulure,  and  a  difficult  vine  to  handle,  on  account 
of  its  strong  and  bushy  growth.  Yet  it  makes  a  very  fine, 
smooth,  and  agreeable  wine,  of  fine  bouquet,  though  not 
equal  in  that  respect  to  the  true  Riessling. 

Vine  vigorous,  close  jointed,  and  bushy;  wood,  light  brown, 
with  darker  spots;  buds,  small,  brown;  leaf  medium,  round, 
slightly  lobed,  thin;  bright  green  and  shining,  light  green  and 
smooth  below,  with  yellow  spots  in  fall;  stem  of  leaf,  short, 
thick,  with  reddish  tinge,  points  of  shoots  bright  green. 

10 


144  GRAPE  CULTURE    AND 

Bunch  small  to  medium,  very  compact,  sometimes  shouldered; 
stem  very  short  and  thick,  which  makes  it  difficult  to  pick. 
Berry  round,  though  often  pressed  flat  by  being  so  close  on 
the  bunch,  yellowish  green,  with  a  small  dot,  medium  in  size, 
covered  with  thin  white  bloom,  skin  thick,  juice  very  sweet 
and  spicy:  ripens  end  of  September.  It  also  needs  long 
stakes  and  long  pruning  to  canes  to  bring  good  crops. 

Muscadelle  de  Bordelais.  Synonyms,  Musquette,  Raisinote, 
Cadillac.  This  grape  promises  to  be  of  great  value  here,  on 
account  of  its  peculiar,  spicy  flavor,  which  is  used  to  give  the 
fine  bouquet  to  the  celebrated  Chateau  Yquem  wine.  It  is  a 
very  strong,  stocky,  robust  growing  vine,  and  seems  to  be 
productive.  Wood,  brown,  short  jointed  and  stocky;  leaf 
dark  bright  green  above,  shining,  paler  green  below,  nearly 
round,  slightly  lobed;  points  of  young  shoots  and  leaves 
brownish  gray,  tendrils  simply  forked.  Bunch  small  to  medi- 
um, shouldered,  compact,  short,  thick  stem;  berry  slightly 
oval,  light  yellow,  thin  skin,  very  juicy  and  sweet,  with  a  very 
delicate,  spicy  and  aromatic  flavor.  It  is  here  hardly  long 
enough  to  be  fully  tried,  but  certainly  deserves  a  place  in 
€very  vineyard  where  quality  is  an  object. 

Clarette  Blanche.  Synonyms,  Granolata,  Blanquette  de 
Limoux.  This  is  also  one  of  the  recent  introductions,  but  so 
far  has  proven  itself  a  very  strong  grower,  abundant  bearer, 
and  making  a  wine  of  superior  quality.  I  would  not  yet  ad- 
vise its  general  culture,  but  recommend  it  for  trial  to  those 
who  have  long  seasons  to  ripen,  and  strong  soil.  Vine  a 
strong  grower,  wood  brownish,  short  jointed.  Leaf  large, 
rough,  dark  green  above,  grayish  white  below,  woolly,  points 
•of  young  shoots  whitish  gray,  very  downy,  tendrils  small, 
forked.  Bunch  medium,  broadly  shouldered,  moderately 
compact,  stem  thick  and  short.  Berry  oblong  or  oval, 
medium,  greenish  white,  very  juicy,  skin  thin.  The  samples 
I  have  seen  of  the  wine,  were  very  sprightly  and  delicate. 


WINE-  MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  145 

It  ripens  late,  about  the  middle  of  October  in  Napa,  and 
would  therefore  not  be  suited  to  northern  localities,  while 
well  adapted  further  south. 

These  are  all  high  quality  grapes,  most  of  them  very  abun- 
dant bearers  and  will  certainly  afford  choice  enough  in  white 
wines  for  any  vineyard.  There  are  of  couse  many  others, 
which  are  very  promising,  but  most  of  them  have  not  been 
sufficiently  tried  to  recommend  them.  I  will  add  to  these  a 
few  varieties  of  not  as  high  quality,  but  very  productive,  and 
which  may  be  advantageous  to  blend  with  some  of  the  fore- 


Chasselas  Fontaineblean.  Synonyms,  Golden  Chasselas, 
Sweetwater,  Gutedel.  This  grape  has  been  successful  nearly 
everywhere,  is  a  good  and  regular  bearer,  and  makes  a  very 
fair  wine,  although  not  of  very  high  character.  It  is  one  of 
those  vines  which  will  not  disappoint  the  planter,  and  which 
can  be  much  improved  by  blending  with  higher  grade  varie- 
ties such  as  Marsanne,  Green  Hungarian  and  Traminer. 
Vine  a  strong  but  slender  grower,  which  will  bear  well  with 
short  or  long  pruning,  low  or  high  stakes.  Wood  brown, 
long  jointed,  slender;  leaf  thin,  deeply  lobed,  bright  green, 
ends  of  shoots  and  young  leaves  brownish  green.  Bunch 
medium,  compact,  shouldered;  berry  medium,  round,  yel- 
low, transparent,  of  a  peculiar  crackling  firmness,  juicy, 
.sweet,  but  without  any  very  high  character.  Ripens  early, 
about  the  middle  of  September  here,  and  is  also  one  of  the 
earliest  market  grapes. 

Chasselas  Violet.  Synonym,  Koenigs  Gutedel,  Violet  Chas- 
selas. This  is  a  grape  of  higher  character  than  the  preced- 
ing, but  must  be  pressed  soon  after  crushing,  or  the  color  of 
the  wine  will  be  too  dark,  turning  a  reddish  yellow  tinge. 
Also  a  very  reliable  bearer.  Vine  a  strong,  long  jointed 
:grower,  wood  dark  brown,  with  a  violet  tinge;  leaf  thin,  dark 
.brownish  green,  deeply  lobed,  young  growth  brownish. 


146  GRAPE  CUI/flTUE  AND 

Bunch  long,  shouldered,  compact;  berry  round,  pale  violet 
red,  and  has  the  peculiarity  of  acquiring  a  violet  tinge  when 
only  half  grown,  sweet  and  juicy.  Makes  a  very  agreeable 
wine,  and  ripens  at  same  time  with  the  foregoing. 

Victoria  Chasselas.  Queen  Victoria.  This  is  in  my  opin- 
ion the  most  valuable  of  the  Chasselas  family,  as  it  really 
makes  a  fine  wine,  is  easy  of  culture,  and  a  great  bearer. 
Vine  vigorous,  very  short  jointed  and  brittle,  wood  grayish 
yellow,  thick  and  strong.  Leaf  bright  green,  deeply  lobed 
and  shining,  young  shoots  with  numerous  laterals.  Bunch 
very  large  and  heavy,  often  weighing  five  pounds,  shoul- 
dered, very  compact,  stem  brown,  very  thick.  Berry 
medium,  round,  pale  lilac  purple,  with  lilac  bloom,  juicy, 
vinous,  and  refreshing.  This  is  a  fine  grape,  easy  of  cul- 
ture, as  it  will  bear  well  with  short  pruning,  easily  picked, 
and  deserves  more  attention  than  it  has  received  so  far. 

White  Elben.  Synonym  Elbling,  Kleinberger,  Kleinbeeriger, 
This  variety  is  cultivated  considerably  in  Sonoma  Valley, 
where  it  bears  fairly  well,  often  very  abundantly  and  is 
prized  for  the  lively  wine  it  makes,  which  though  not  of  high 
character,  has  a  very  agreeable  lively  acid  and  pleasant  bou- 
quet. I  would  also  think  it  a  fine  wine  for  blending  with  Tra- 
miner,  Chauche  Gris  or  Marsanne,  as  it  will  serve  to  relieve 
the  abundance  of  their  flavor,  and  lack  of  tartaric  acid.  Vine 
a  strong  grower,  wood  brown,  with  black  spots.  Leaf  large, 
rough,  heart  shaped,  seldom  lobed,  dark  green  above,  light 
green  and  woolly  below,  leaf  stem  short  and  thick,  hairy,  red- 
dish, young  points  of  branches  reddish  green.  Bunch  large,, 
shouldered;  berry  rather  large,  round,  but  the  vine  has  the 
peculiarity,  unless  the  blooming  season  is  very  favorable,  to 
set  imperfectly,  and  thus  a  great  many  small  berries  are  scat- 
tered among  the  large  ones,  which  are  very  sweet  and  fine, 
but  only  one  fourth  common  size.  This  has  given  the  grape 
the  name  "  Kleinbseriger,"  by  which  it  is  known  in  many 


WINK-MAKIN<;  IN  CALIFORNIA.  147 

parts  of  Germany.     It  requires  high  stakes  and  long  pruning, 
ripe  about  last  week  in  September. 

The  Blaue  Elben,  introduced  and  cultivated  largely  by  Mr. 
L.  J.  Rose  of  San  Gabriel,  and  of  whi:h  he  has  made  some 
very  fine  wine,  is  similar  to  its  white  sister  except  in  color. 
But  although  the  grape  is  black,  its  juice  and  skins  contain 
very  little  color  and  tannin,  and  it  is  used  for  white  wine. 
There  is  but  little  doubt  that  these  lighter  varieties,  the  White 
and  Blue  Elben,  Burger,  Folle  Blanche,  etc.,  may  be  better 
adapted  for  wine  at  the  south  than  they  are  here,  and  prove 
the  varieties  for  them  to  plant,  if  their  aim  is  to  make  dry, 
light  white  wines. 

Burger.  Synonyms,  Putzscheer,  Large  White  Tokay. 
This  grape  has  become  so  universally  known  under  the  name 
of  Burger  in  this  State,  that  it  will  be  impossible  to  change  it, 
although  Burger  is  only  a  local  synonym  for  the  White  Elben 
in  Germany.  It  is  here,  in  Northern  California,  regarded  as 
only  a  quantity  grape,  for  it  is  certainly  incredibly  productive, 
but  in  the  valley  lands  it  yields  an  entirely  neutral  wine,  thin, 
acid,  and  without  character.  On  rich  hillsides  its  product  is 
somewhat  better,  and  in  good  seasons  it  makes  a  very  fair 
wine.  In  the  South,  however,  it  improves  and  may  be  valu- 
able for  light  wine;  certainly  Mr.  Rose  has  made  creditable 
wine  of  it  at  San  Gabriel.  However,  its  foliage  is  not  very 
good,  and  its  fruit  therefore  liable  to  sunscald.  I  do  not  wish 
to  recommend  it  for  extensive  planting,  but  where  it  is  already 
planted,  it  may  be  used  to  good  advantage  as  a  blend  with 
very  heavy,  rich  wines.  One  fourth  Burger,  added  to  these, 
often  gives  them  sprightliness,  and  just  the  agreeable  acidity 
they  may  need.  Besides,  it  always  ferments  well,  and  is  of 
value  as  an  addition  to  such  varieties  in  the  fermenting  vat, 
as  are  sluggish  in  their  fermentation. 

Vine  a  strong  grower,  with  dark  brown  wood,  speckled 
with  black.  Leaf  nearly  round,  but  lobed,  light  green  above 


148  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

with  white  down  beneath,  stem  of  leaf  reddish,  young  points 
of  shoots  white  and  wooly.  Bunch  very  large,  loose,  shoul- 
dered; berry  round,  of  somewhat  unequal  size,  whitish  greenr 
covered  with  white  bloom,  skin  thin,  very  juicy  but  watery 
and  thin.  It  need  hardly  be  mentioned  here,  that  this  is  not 
the  grape  which  makes  the  celebrated  Tokayes  wines.  These 
are  made  from  the  Furmint  or  Yellow  Hosier,  an  entirely  dif- 
ferent grape.  The  Burger  ripens  late,  about  middle  of 
October. 

Folk  Blanche.  La  Folle,  Enrageat.  This  is  called  "the 
crazy"  on  account  of  its  heavy  bearing  in  France.  It  seems 
to  be  somewhat  like  Burger  in  that  respect,  and  of  a  similar 
character,  and  may  play  a  similar  role  as  a  desirable  addition 
to  very  heavy  musts,  and  for  fine  brandies,  for  which  purpose 
it  is  used  in  France  to  a  great  extent.  Vine  a  moderate 
grower,  with  yellow  brownish  wood,  marked  with  darker  spots. 
Leaf  medium,  thin,  smooth,  pale  green  above,  whitish  green 
below,  short  stem,  young  shoots  white  and  wooly.  Bunch 
large,  with  uneven  sized  berries;  berry  small,  oblong,  trans- 
parent, yellow,  covered  with  gray  bloom,  very  juicy;  stem 
short  and  stout. 

In  conclusion  of  the  description  of  the  leading  white  wine 
grapes,  I  wish  to  say  that  I  could  have  added  a  great  many 
more  of  high  promise,  many  of  whom  will  no  doubt  prove 
valuable  for  certain  sections  of  the  State.  But  I  did  not  wish 
to  make  too  large  a  list,  nor  did  I  wish  to  recommend  any- 
thing for  general  cultivation  that  has  not  been  well  and 
thoroughly  tried.  Among  them  I  will  name  the  famous 
White  Pinot  (White  Burgundy,  Melon  blanc)  the  Furmint  or 
yellow  Mosler,  Sauvignon  blanc,  Wests  White  Prolific,. 
Moselle  Riessling,  etc. 

MUSCATELLE    TYPE. 

The  making  of  this  class  of  wine  has  so  far  not  been  fos- 
tered much,  as  the  offensive  rankness  of  flavor  in  the  Muscat 


WINE-MAKING   IN  CALIFORNIA.  14S> 

of  Alexandria,  generally  used  in  white  wines  of  that  type,  has 
prejudiced  the  public  against  them,  so  that  there  is  but  little 
demand  for  them  now.  Aside  from  the  Muscadelle  de  Bor- 
delais  described  below,  which,  however,  has  an  entirely  dis- 
tinct flavor  and  bouquet,  there  is  but  one  variety  now  culti- 
vated, which  will  make  a  very  fine  wine,  dry  or  sweet,  as  it 
may  be  handled  in  cellar;  this  is  the  White  Muscateller* 
Synonyms  Gelber  Muscateller,  Muscat  blanc,  Muscat  de 
Frontignan.  This  is  mostly  cultivated  in  Southern  Europe, 
in  Germany,  Spain  and  France,  and  its  wine  classed  very- 
high,  both  in  the  dry  and  sweet  form.  The  famous  "Muscat 
Lunel "  of  France,  one  of  the  choicest  sweet  or  liqueur 
wines,  which  retails  as  high  as  $3  per  bottle,  is  made  from 
this  grape,  and  there  is  a  certain  class  of  customers  here, 
who  prefer  its  dry  wine  to  any  other,  and  pay  high  prices 
for  it. 

Vine  a  strong,  upright  grower;  wood  reddish  brown, 
straight,  with  rather  long  joints.  Leaf  round,  seldom  lobed, 
generally  heart-shaped,  medium  size,  smooth,  light  green 
above,  paler  green  below.  Leaf  stem  thick  and  short,  cords 
of  young  shoots  greenish  brown,  slightly  wooly.  Bunch 
medium,  narrow  and  long,  compact,  sometimes  shouldered;; 
short  thick  stems;  berry  medium,  round,  yellowish  green, 
often  acquiring  a  brown  tinge  in  the  sun,  covered  with  white 
bloom,  thick  skin,  very  sweet,  with  a  pronounced  but  delicate 
Muscat  flavor.  This  may  yet  become  a  very  profitable  vari- 
ety in  this  State,  as  it  is  a  good  bearer  with  long  pruning, 
and  fine  wine  has  been  made  repeatedly  from  it.  It  seems  to 
succeed  well  in  the  more  southern  sections,  and  more  atten- 
tion should  be  paid  to  it  there,  for  the  manufacture  of 
liqueur  wine 

WHITE    WINES    OF    SHERRY    TYPE. 

There  are  quite  a  number  of  the  recent  importations  from 
Spain  and  Portugal,  especially  among  those  made  by  the 


150  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

Natoma  Co.,  which  promise  highly,  but  they  have  not  been 
sufficiently  tested  yet  to  speak  definitely  as  to  their  merits. 
I  have  already  referred  to  the  sherry  flavor  which  the  Sultana 
acquires  with  age,  and  have  no  doubt  that  it  could  be  used 
for  that  purpose  as  well  as  for  light  wine.  West's  Prolific  is 
evidently  of  this  class,  although  it  seems  difficult  to  find  its 
true  name,  and  is  a  variety  that  will  not  disappoint  the 
grower,  as  it  seems  an  unusually  heavy  bearer,  and  makes 
fine  wine  and  brandy.  I  am  not  sufficiently  familiar  with  ti 
to  give  a  definite  description  of  it,  but  have  seen  very  fine, 
high  flavored  wine  and  brandy  from  it,  made  by  Mr.  West,  at 
Stockton,  San  Joaquin  county. 

Palomino.  Synonyms,  Listan,  erroneously  known  as 
Golden  Chasselas  in  Napa  Valley.  This  has  been  cultivated 
here  for  a  long  time  under  the  last  name,  and  has  acquired 
quite  a  reputation  as  an  abundant  and  regular  bearer,  also 
making  a  good  white  wine,  which,  however,  always  acquires 
more  or  less  of  the  sherry  flavor  with  age.  Vine  a  fair 
grower,  wood  close  jointed.  Leaf  medium,  oblong,  deeply 
lobed,  bright  green  above,  grayish  green  and  tomentose 
below,  stem  short,  young  points  with  reddish  tint  and  wooly. 
Bunch  large,  conical,  rather  loose  and  shouldered.  Berry 
round,  full  medium,  sometimes  flat,  pale  green  with  yellow- 
ish tinge,  thin  skin,  juicy  and  sweet,  resembling  Chasselas, 
which  has  perhaps  led  to  the  misnomer.  A  profitable  and 
reliable  variety.  Ripens  latter  part  of  September. 

Yellow  Mosler.  Pedro  Ximenes,  erroneously.  This  is  one  of 
the  celebrated  sherry  varieties  of  Spain,  and  has  been  culti- 
vated here  with. variable  success.  Mr.  Crabb  reports  it  as  a 
good  bearer  on  his  place,  while  on  the  Talcoa  vineyards,  ex- 
posed to  the  strong  winds  from  the  bay  and  coast,  it  suffered 
badly  from  coulure,  although  the  vines  showed  abundance  of 
fruit  and»certainly  make  a  splendid  wine,  delicate,  smooth, 
and  high  flavored.  It  is  well  wrorth  a  trial  in  locations  where 


WINE-MA  KING  IN  CALIFORNIA. 

it  is  somewhat  sheltered  from  wind.  Vine  a  strong,  up- 
right grower,  with  grayish,  short  jointed  wood.  Leaf  large 
and  heavy,  lobed;  bright  green  above,  paler  green  below, 
covered  with  fine  hairs  or  wool,  young  points  tomentose  or 
wooly,  whitish.  Bunch  long  and  loose,  somewhat  shouldered, 
stems  of  berries  very  long,  berry  oblong,  yellowish  white, 
full  medium,  transparent,  skin  thin;  juice  sweet  and  aromatic, 
but  also  with  a  lively  acid.  Ripens  somewhat  late,  about 
first  week  in  October. 

Among  the  most  promising  varieties  of  that  classs,  now 
under  trial,  are  Mantuo  de  Pilas,  Mourisco  Blanco,  etc. 
All  this  is  as  yet  experimental,  and  needs  further  development. 

RED  WINE  VARIETIES. 

Here  again,  we  do  not  suffer  from  scarcity  of  varieties,  but 
in  fact  there  are  so  many  that  it  is  very  difficult  to  choose  from 
them.  I  shall  therefore  confine  myself  mostly  to  those  whiqh 
are  well  proven  to  succeed  in  this  State,  and  give  a  list  of 
untried  but  promising  varieties  afterwards.  Let  us  not  for- 
get, however,  that  the  high  character  of  a  red  wine  depends 
largely,  if  not  altogether,  on  the  soil  which  produces  it.  It 
is  useless  to  plant  a  red  wine  grape  on  sandy  soil,  lacking  in  the 
minerals,  the  substance  that  will  alone  produce  color,  tannin, 
and  also  that  fine  flavor  which  a  good  claret  or  burgundy 
should  have,  to  compete  successfully  with  the  best  brands  of 
Europe.  I  have  already  given  the  leading  ideas  in  Chapter 
I,  the  reasons  which  lead  me  to  believe  that  we  already  have 
an  over  production  of  vin  ordinaire,  of  the  common  grades 
of  red  or  cargo  wines;  let  us  not  add  more  to  them,  but  be 
careful  where  and  what  we  plant.  A  high  grade  wine  costs 
no  more  for  casks  and.  making,  and  it  is  even  handled  easier 
in  the  cellar,  and  with  less  labor  than  a  common  one.  It 
costs  no  more  freight  or  casks  to  ship  it,  yet  it  will  bring 
double  and  treble  the  "price,  and  what  is  more,  will  increase 
the  demand  and  build  up  the  reputation  of  the  State  and  the 


152 


GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 


individual  grower.  And  I  say  frankly,  that  I  do  not  write 
this  book  for  those  who,  other  things  being  even,  would  not 
take  more  delight  in  handling  and  producing  fine  wine,  than  in 
producing  a  common  or  low  grade,  even  if  equally  profitable. 
Such  men  will  not  add  to  the  prosperity  of  the  business  nor ^ 
their  own,  and  the  sooner  they  step  out  of  the  ranks,  and 
'make  room  for  better  men,  the  more  lucky  for  us  and  them. 
Zinfandel,  or  Zinfindal,  as  some  call  it.  The  true  origin 
and  dissemination  of  this  important  variety  is  not  yet  clear. 
It  seems  clear,  however,  that  Col.  Agoston  Haraszthy  brought 
it  from  Hungary,  and  that  it  was  also  received  from  some 
New  York  nurseries  about  the  same  time.  Downing  in  his 
"  Fruits  and  Fruit  Trees  of  America  "  describes  it  among  the 
the  foreign  varieties.  Be  that  as  it  may,  it  has  proven  of  great 
value  in  developing  the  wine  industry  of  the  State,  as  it 
proved  that  a  really  good,  red  wine,  resembling  choice  claret, 
could  be  made  in  this  State,  a  fact  which  was  very  much 
doubted  before  its  introduction.  It  may  be  closely  related  to 
the  most  famous  red  wine  grape  of  Hungary,  the  Kadarka,  the 
description  of  which  closely  resembles  it.  However  this 
may  be,  we  know  and  appreciate  it  under  its  present  name  as 
one  of  the  most  valuable  grapes  for  red  wine  in  good  loca- 
tions, and  properly  handled.  I  have  yet  to  see  the  red  wine 
of  any  variety,  which  I  would  prefer  to  the  best  samples  of  Zin- 
fandel  produced  in  this  State.  Unfortunately  these  best  samples 
are  like  angels  visits,  "  few  and  far  between."  The  reasons 
for  this  are  manifold.  While  it  will  grow  and  bear  abun- 
dantly in  almost  any  soil,  it  is  by  no  means  a  perfect  grape, 
and  must  be  closely  studied  to  give  its  best  results.  First,  it 
needs  a  soil  rich  in  minerals,  iron  especially,  to  produce  its  best 
fruit.  Then  it  must  be  well  ripened,  and  many  cannot  wait 
for  this,  but  pick  it  when  fully  colored.  As,  with  a  fair  per- 
centage of  sugar,  it  also  contains  abundance  of  tartaric  acid, 
it  'will  make  a  wine  that  is  greenish,  harsh  and  sour,  if 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  15$ 

picked  too  early.  Then  it  ripens  unevenly,  often  having  a 
large  quantity  of  shriveled  berries  together  with  unripe  ones, 
on  the  same  bunch.  This  is  apt  to  deceive  the  wine-maker,, 
as  the  sugar  contained  in  the  over  ripe  berries  does  not  ap- 
pear fully  in  the  must,  when  testing  with  the  saccharometer. 
When  this  is  the  case,  and  there  are  many  of  these  dried  ber- 
ries, the  juice  will  really  come  to  25°  Balling,  when  it  shows  but 
22  to  23°.  Moreover,  these  dried  berries  are  a  troublesome 
element  in  fermentation,  and  need  careful  watching  and  fre- 
quent stirring  to  bring  it  through  safe.  But  for  all  this,  it  is 
a  noble  grape,  and  deserves  all  the  care  we  can  give  it. 

There  are  many  locations  in  this  State  where  it  has  been 
planted,  and  will  not  make  a  first-class  red  wine,  where  it 
could  be  utilized  better  for  white  wine.  In  this  case,  let 
the  grapes  be  thoroughly  ripe,  then  crush  and  press  immediate- 
ly, but  press  lightly,  throwing  the  remainder  of  the  pomace 
into  the  fermenting  vat.  together  with  such  red  wine  grapes  as 
Mataro,  Crabbs  Burgundy,  etc. ,  and  make  them  into  red  wine 
afterwards.  The  first  run  of  the  juice,  thus  obtained,  will- 
make  a  very  sprightly  white  or  rather  Schiller  wine  (light  red), 
which  can  be  advantageously  used  in  blending  with  heavier 
bodied  white  varieties.  It  generally  has  abundance  of  acid,  and 
a  very  agreeable  flavor.  But  this  is  diverging  into  wine  mak- 
ing and  I  will  return  to  the  subject  of  grapes,  asking  the  read- 
er's pardon  for  overstepping  my  limits  here. 

Vine  a  vigorous  grower,  with  grayish  brown  wood.  Leaf 
dark  green,  lobed,  with  lighter  green  below,  rather  hairy  or 
wooly,  long;  leaf  stem  reddish,  also  long  and  wavy,  young 
shoots  slightly  tomentose,  tinged  with  red.  Bunch  long  and 
heavy,  shouldered,  often  double,  or  the  shoulder  as  long  as  the 
main  bunch,  stem  short  and  strong,  brown,  compact.  Berry- 
medium,  round,  black  with  blue  bloom,  and  a  peculiar  star- 
like  dot  in  the  center,  but  often  intermingled  with  small  shriv- 


154  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

eled  berries,  ripening  unevenly,  very  juicy,  with  a  lively  acid 
mingling  with  the  sweet;  skin  thin. 

The  vine  is  very  productive,  easy  of  cultivation,  often  pro- 
ducing a  second  and  even  a  third  crop  from  the  laterals.  Well 
adapted  to  short  stool  pruning,  and  3  to  4  feet  stakes. 

Mataro,  Synonyms,  Mourvedre,  Catalan,  Balzac,  Upright 
Burgundy.  I  put  this  grape  here,  not  because  of  its  high 
quality,  but  because  it  forms  a  basis,  and  often  a  wholesome 
addition  to  many  French  clarets,  and  may  become  useful  as 
a  blend  with  Zinfandel  and  others,  as  it  ferments  easily,  its 
wine  is  said  to  be  very  healthy,  and  improves  with  age.  Other- 
wise it  rather  produces  quantity  than  quality. 

Vine  a  strong  and  very  upright  grower,  wood  brown,  but 
with  gray  bloom.  Leaf  thick  and  heavy,  medium  size,  dark 
green  above,  light  green  below,  tomentose  or  woolly.  Young 
shoots  whitish  gray,  with  many  strong  tendrils.  Bunch  large 
and  heavy,  shouldered,  stem  very  thick  and  woody.  Berry 
rather  small,  round,  black,  with  blue  bloom,  rather  dry,  with 
abundance  of  tannin,  but  not  much  color.  One  of  the  most 
productive  and  easily  cultivated  vines,  and  useful  in  a  vine- 
yard of  red  varieties  in  many  respects.  Ripens  late,  middle 
of  October. 

Refosco,  Synonym  Crabbs  Black  Burgundy,  Petit  Pinot. 
This  may  not  be  its  true  name,  it  may  be  Pinot  Noir,  but  it 
is  known  best  by  the  second  name.  It  is  a  very  productive  va- 
riety, bearing  well  with  short  pruning,  and  makes  a  very  deep 
colored  wine,  which  is  of  high  character,  though  perhaps  lack- 
ing sprightliness,  which  can  be  remedied  by  blending  with 
more  sprightly  varieties. 

Vine  a  moderate,  but  very  symmetrical  and  upright  grower, 
with  grayish  brown,  short  jointed  wood.  Leaf  rather  small, 
heart  shaped,  seldom  lobed  ;  dark  green  above,  whitish  green 
beneath,  young  points  whitish,  tinged  with  red.  Bunch  small 
but  compact,  some  times  shouldered,  with  short  stems  ;  cy- 


WINK-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  155 

lindrical,  berry  small,  slightly  oblong,  black  with  blue  bloom, 
moderately  juicy,  sweet,  rather  thick  skin.  Ripens  about 
first  of  October. 

Gam-ay  Teinturier,  Synonym  Gamay  McGuey.  This  is  a  very 
productive  variety,  though  a  moderate  grower,  and  as  its  juice 
is  red,  is  no  doubt  valuable  as  a  grape  for  coloring,  also  makes 
a  very  sprightly  and  finely  flavored  wine  by  itself,  of  the  true 
claret  type. 

Vine  a  rather  slow  grower,  with  close  jointed,  dark  colored 
wood.  Leaf  medium,  heart  shaped,  shining  dark  green  above, 
lighter  green  below.  Leafstems  short,  reddish.  Bunch  small 
to  medium,  compact,  cylindrical,  sometimes  shouldered,  with 
short  stems.  Berry  medium,  black,  oblong,  juicy,  sprightly 
and  high  flavored,  with  purple  juice.  Colors  early,  but  ought 
to  hang  until  first  of  October  to  develop  its  true  quality,  it  is 
a  very  abundant  bearer,  with  short  pruning. 

Grosse  Blaue,  Koelner,  Grobhwarze.  This  variety  was 
introduced  here  by  Mr.  John  Thomann,  who  brought  it  from 
Switzerland;  and  has  made  quite  a  name  as  a  valuable  variety 
for  blending,  and  on  account  of  its  deep  color  as  well  as 
abundance  of  tannin.  While  I  do  not  consider  it  a  strictly 
choice  variety  by  itself,  yet  it  makes  a  good  neutral  wine, 
which  is  very  useful  as  a  blend  with  Crabbs  Black  Burgundy, 
and  other  softer  varieties,  and  therefore  very  useful  in  the 
wine  cellar. 

Vine  a  vigorous  but  not  very  stocky  grower,  wood  grayish 
brown,  long  and  thin,  close  jointed.  Leaf  thin,  deeply  lobed, 
purplish  green  above,  whitish  green  or  tomentose  below,  stem 
long  and  thin,  purplish  green,  young  shoots  purplish  white. 
Bunch  large  and  cylindrical,  sometimes  shouldered  ;  berry, 
large,  oblong,  black,  shining,  of  pleasant  quality  for  the  ta- 
ble, juicy,  stem  of  bunch  long,  moderately  productive. 
Ripens  about  first  of  October.  Needs  rather  long  pruning. 

Petit   Sirrah.        This,    although    of   recent    introduction, 


156  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

seems  to  succeed  very  well  here,  and  fine  wines  have  been 
•made  from  it.  It  needs  somewhat  long  pruning  and  high 
stakes  to  bring  out  its  full  bearing  qualities.  Vine  a  strong, 
long  jointed  grower,  wood  grayish,  with  brown  dots.  Leaf 
large,  lobed,  rough,  dark  green  above,  light  green  and  tomen- 
tose beneath,  young  points  greenish  white,  tomentose.  Bunch 
full  medium,  shouldered,  with  rather  long  stem;  berry  oblong, 
medium  size,  black  with  blue  bloom,  skin  rather  thick,  moder- 
ately juicy,  good  flavor.  Ripens  about  the  first  of  October. 

Mondeuse,  Gros  Sirah.  This  is  closely  related  to  the  fore- 
going, almost  identical  in  growth  and  leaf,  but  a  heavier  bear- 
er, a  more  compact  bunch  and  larger  berry.  Said  to  make  a 
somewhat  coarser  wine  than  Petit  Sirah,  but  very  valuable  for 
blending.  Ripens  about  the  same  time. 

Carignane,  Synonym  Crignane.  This  variety  has  proved 
a  fine  grower  and  very  abundant  bearer  here  ;  its  young  wines 
rank  with  the  finest  reds  I  have  tasted  in  the  State,  but  it  is 
said  to  deteriorate  with  age.  If  this  should  be  so,  and  it 
seems  to  have  the  same  record  in  France,  there  are  certainly 
ways  and  means  of  counteracting  this,  by  judicious  blending 
with  other  varieties.  Vine  a  strong  grower,  wood  yellowish 
brown,  with  white  spots,  young  shoots  green,  tomentose, 
tinged  with  red.  Leaf  large  and  thick,  nearly  heart  shaped, 
dark  green  and  shining  above,  grayish  green  and  tomentose 
beneath,  leaf  stem  thin.  Bunch  veiy  large,  moderately  com- 
pact, shouldered,  stem  long  ;  berry  medium,  slightly  oblong, 
black  with  blue  bloom,  thick  skin,  but  sweet  and  juicy. 
Ripens  about  first  of  October. 

Cabernet  Sauvignon.  This  is  the  highest  type  of  Bordeaux 
•claret,  but  unfortunately  it  is  a  shy  bearer.  Its  aroma  is  so 
peculiar  and  distinct,  however,  and  at  the  same  time  so 
strong,  reminding  of  the  frost  grape  flavor  in  the  Clinton  and 
Canada,  that  a  small  proportion  of  it  in  fermentation  will 
give  its  peculiar  character  to  other  varieties  rather  deficient 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  157 

in  flavor  but  good  bearers.  How  far  this  can  be  carried,  and 
with  what  varieties  it  would  make  a  good  blend,  remains  to 
be  tried  further.  I  would  suggest  the  Mataro  and  Carignans. 

Vine  a  slender  and  rather  weak  grower,  wood  brown,  with 
a  grayish  cast,  leaves  light  green,  deeply  lobed,  rather  small, 
downish  beneath,  laterals  abundant  and  small,  points  of 
shoots  gray  with  reddish  tinge.  Bunch  rather  small,  loose, 
shouldered;  berry  small,  round,  black,  covered  with  blue 
bloom,  juicy  and  sweet,  but  with  a  peculiar  aroma  referred 
to  above.  It  is  subject  to  Coulure,  and  bears  small  crops 
generally,  even  with  long  pruning,  but  can  hardly  be  dis- 
pensed with,  on  account  of  its  high  character,  which  it  will 
impart  to  other  varieties  in  fermentation. 

Cabernet  Frane  is  closely  related  to  it,  but  the  leaves  are 
not  so  deeply  lobed,  and  the  grape  of  perhaps  not  quite  so 
high  a  quality,  though  it  seems  somewhat  more  productive. 

Chauche  Noir.  Synonyms,  Blauer  Burgunder,  Blauer 
Claevner,  Black  Pinot,  Black  Cluster,  Black  Riesling,  Pinot 
Noir,  Black  Morillion.  This  is  one  of  the  most  famous  red 
wine  grapes  of  'Europe,  forming  the  basis  of  the  most  re- 
nowned French  and  German  wines  of  the  Burgundy  type.  It 
is  not  a  very  heavy  bearer,  however,  nor  is  it  very  intense  in 
color,  and  I  believe  that  its  true  province  here,  is  to  make  a 
fine  white  wine  from  its  first  pressing,  and  the  pom  ice  after 
the  pressing  of  this  to  be  added  to  wines  of  deep  color,  such 
as  Zinfandel,  Grosse  Blaue,  etc.,  to  give  bouquet  and  finesse. 

Vine  a  strong  grower,  stocky  and  heavy,  with  many  branches 
and  laterals,  close  jointed;  wood  brownish  gray,  with  black 
spots,  buds  close,  2  to  3  inches,  grayish,  woolly.  Leaves 
medium  size,  roundish,  with  3  to  5  lobes,  dark  green  above, 
lighter  green  below,  tips  of  young  shoots  reddish  gray,  to- 
mentose.  Bunch  small,  sometimes  shouldered,  compact; 
berry  slightly  oblong,  black,  with  slight  bloom,  small,  skin 
thick,  moderately  juicy,  fine  flavor.  Requires  age,  and  long 


158  'iRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

pruning  to  produce  well,  and  is  seldom  a  heavy  bearer,  but 
will  make  very  choice  wine.  Ripens  early,  and  as  it  also 
starts  early  in  spring,  is  susceptible  to  late  frosts. 

Meunier,  Synonyms,  Millers  Burgundy,  Muellervebe.  Vine 
a  strong  grower,  resembling  the  foregoing  in  the  shape  of  the 
leaf,  and  habit,  but  the  leaf  is  covered  with  white  bloom, 
like  flour,  hence  its  name.  The  same  bloom  is  prevalent  on 
the  berry,  which  makes  vine  and  fruit  look  like  if  flour  had 
been  dusted  on  them.  It  makes  a  fine  and  delicate  red 
wine,  and  is  somewhat  more  hardy  in  its  bloom  than  the 
foregoing,  though  it  also  needs  long  pruning  to  bring  a  fair 
crop.  Ripens  early,  about  loth  of  September  here. 

Portugieser,  Blauer.  Synonymns  Moreto.  Vine  a  strong 
grower,  with  strong,  pithy,  young  canes,  which  look  almost 
flat,  wood  brown,  with  darker  spots  and  streaks,  young  points 
shining  light  green.  Leaf  large,  thin,  deeply  lobed,  round, 
smooth,  dark  green  above,  light  green  below,  shining.  Bunch 
medium  size  to  large,  compact,  sometimes  shouldered,  short, 
woody  ^tem;  berry  round,  medium,  blackish  blue,  with  fine 
bloom,  some  dark  rusty  spots,  skin  thin,  very  juicy  and 
sweet,  ripens  early.  It  makes  a  very  pleasant,  dark  red 
wine,  without  prominent  character,  and  should  be  blended 
with  grapes  which  contain  more  tannin  and  acid,  or  used  for 
Port,  for  which  it  is  very  good.  The  vine  is  very  productive. 

Trousseau.  Synonym,  Trussiaux.  Vine  a  strong  grower, 
productive  with  long  pruning.  Leaf  medium,  nearly  round, 
not  lobed,  or  but  slightly,  downy  below,  deep  green  above. 
Bunch  rather  small,  compact,  seldom  shouldered,  short  stem; 
berry  below  medium,  slightly  oblong,  short  stem,  ripens  early, 
very  sweet.  Better  adapted  to  Port  than  for  Claret.  For  the 
first,  it  is  perhaps  better  than  any  other  variety. 

Tannat  Noir.  This  new  variety  seems  to  meet  with  gen- 
eral favor,  being  productive,  hardy,  and  making  a  very  fine, 
dark  red  wine,  with  a  good  deal  of  tannin  and  character. 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  159 

Vine,  a  good  grower,  productive.  Leaf  rather  large,  rough, 
tomentose,  slightly  lobed.  Bunch  medium,  shouldered,  com- 
pact.  Berry  oblong,  blue,  full,  medium,  ripens  late. 

Spanna.  Synonyms  Nebbiolo,  Nebbiolo  D'Asti.  An  Italian 
grape  from  which  some  of  the  most  renowned  wines  of  that 
country  are  made.  Wood  vigorous,  light  brown,  long  jointed; 
leaf  large,  tomentose,  deeply  lobed,  stalk  long.  Bunch  me- 
dium to  large,  long,  shouldered,  loose,  long  stem;  berry 
roundish  oblong,  violet  blue,  thick  skin,  sweet  and  juicy, 
ripens  late. 

There  are  others  that  are  very  promising,  but  not  fully 
tried,  and  I  think  it  best  not  to  make  too  long  a  list.  The 
above  will  give  choice  enough,  and  also  comprise  some  of  the 
best  grapes  for  Port.  Among  those  for  coloring  especially, 
and  worthy  of  a  trial,  I  will  name  Pied  de  Perdrix,  Petit 
Bouschet,  Alicanthe  Bouschet,  St.  Macaire,  Iloussard. 
Among  the  varieties  which  make  an  excellent  wine,  but  are 
so  unproductive  that  they  will  not  pay  for  planting,  I  will 
name  the  Malbeck,  which  nearly  always  drops  its  fruit  with 
coulure. 

GRAPES  FOR  THE  MARKET  AND  RAISINS. 

I  shall  take  these  together,  as  some  of  the  best  market 
grapes  also  make  good  raisins,  and  vice  versa.  Nor  do  I 
ciaim  to  be  s®  well  versed  in  them,  having  made  the  best 
wine  grapes  my  special  study.  Yet  the  shipping  of  grapes  to 
market,  as  well  as  curing  them  for  raisins,  present  two  very 
important  branches  of  the  industry,  paying  better  at  this  time, 
perhaps,  than  wine-making.  Besides,  many  have  conscien- 
cious  scruples  against  making  wine,  who  yet  would  like  to 
engage  in  grape  growing,  and  for  these  the  shipping  of  grapes 
and  raisin-making  offer  a  field  which  they  can  enter  without  a 
twinge  of  conscience.  While  I  do  not  share  their  views,  but 
believe  in  the  introduction  of  pure  light  wines  as  the  bes 
promoter  of  true  temperance,  yet  I  respect  the  honest  convic- 

11 


160  GRAPE  CULTUKE    AND 

tions  of  anyone,  and  feel  that  their  interests  are  fully  entitled 
to  consideration  in  a  book  dedicated  to  the  promotion  of  all 
the  branches  of  grape  culture. 

The  shipping  of  grapes  to  Eastern  markets  has  received  a  new 
impetus  since  we  have  better  terms  and  facilities.  How  to  pick 
and  pack  them,  and  at  what  time,  we  will  consider  in  a  special 
chapter,  and  now  simply  discuss  the  best  varieties.  While 
many  may  be  used  for  home  markets  which  will  not  stand  an 
Eastern  trip,  in  shipping  grapes  we  must  confine  ourselves  to 
varieties  which  are  attractive  in  appearance,  and  have  at  the 
same  time  a  rather  thick,  tough  skin,  so  that  they  will  carry 
without  bruising.  Quality  is  a  secondary  consideration,  for 
the  most  high  flavored  and  delicate  grapes,  if  they  do  not 
carry  well,  will  not  bring  a  paying  price  in  market  if  they  ar- 
rive in  bad  order.  For  home  use,  of  course,  there  are  a  num- 
ber of  varieties  of  choice  quality  that  will  not  bear  transpor- 
tation. Nearly  all  our  choice  wine  grapes  are  also  nice  for 
the  table,  often  more  spicy  than  those  which  are  adapted  for 
transportation. 

That  the  climate  is  also  all  important  in  the  choice  of  vari- 
eties is  self-evident.  Some  localities  will  find  greater  advan- 
tages in  raising  early  varieties,  others  in  planting  the  very  latest. 
Some  of  the  Santa  Cruz  mountains  shipped  grapes  fresh  from 
the  vines  as  late  as  Christmas  and  New  Years,  last  year,  hav- 
ing had  no  killing  frosts;  and  they  were  sold  at  $2.50  per 
20  Ib  box  in  San  Francisco  at  wholesale,  certainly  a  very 
paying  business.  Vacaville  and  Pleasant  Valley  generally  ship 
the  earliest,  and  obtain  high  prices  for  them.  But  the  early 
varieties  and  early  locations  will  pay  best  for  home  market; 
for  shipping  East  they  will  come  into  competition  with  East- 
ern American  varieties.  Therefore,  for  shipping  to  the  East 
we  should  have  either  very  showy  varieties,  which  find  a  ready 
sale  on  account  of  their  size  and  beauty;  or  very  late  keepers 
to  follow  their  latest  varieties.  The  southern  route  now  fur- 


WINE-MAKING    IN   CALIFORNIA.  161 

nishes  facilities  for  shipping  nearly  all  winter;  and  thus  our 
late  varieties  could  come  into  the  Eastern  markets  for  the 
winter  holidays,  and  would  outsell  any  of  their  late  varieties. 
So  much  for  general  rules  to  guide  in  selecting  varieties  for 
this  purpose,  now  to  the  discussion  of  the  varieties  themselves. 

FOR    EARLY    MARKET. 

The  Chasselas  Fontainebleau,  or  Sweet  water,  is  still  about 
the  earliest  variety  for  that  purpose,  which  bears  sufficiently. 
This  has  been  described  under  varieties  for  win?.  The  Early 
Madeline,  synonym  Madeliene  Angevine,  is  still  a  week 
earlier,  and  of  rather  better  quality,  will  also  carry  well ;  but 
so  far  it  has  been  a  shy  bearer,  especially  where  late  frosts  pre- 
vail, as  it  is  one  of  the  first  to  vegetate  and  bloom.  For 
locations  free  from  frost,  it  would  pay  to  try  with  long  prun- 
ing, when  I  think  it  will  bear  well.  I  would  certainly  try  it 
at  Vacaville  and  Pleasant  Valley.  Vine  a  moderate  grower, 
with  long  jointed,  brown  wood.  Leaf  medium,  deeply  lobed, 
dark  green  above,  tomentose  below  ;  young  points  reddish, 
woolly,  slender.  Bunch  medium,  compact,  shouldered. 
Berry  medium,  oblong,  yellowish  green,  transparent,  rather 
thick  skin,  sweet  and  juicy. 

The  earliest  black  variety  is  perhaps  the  Slack  Malvasia, 
so  called  in  this  State.  It  is  a  much  better  table  and  ship- 
ping grape  than  it  is  a  wine  grape,  and  as  it  is  very  productive 
as  well  as  showy,  will  pay  to  grow  for  market  to  a  limited  ex- 
tent. It  is  too  well  known  to  need  description  here,  in  fact 
has  been  too  largely  planted  for  wine,  for  which  it  is  not 
adapted,  as  especially  the  red  wine  will  deteriorate  with  age, 
and  can  only  be  used  for  port.  If  pressed  lightly,  as  soon  as 
crushed,  the  first  juice  makes  a  very  pleasant  light,  white  wine. 

FOR    LATE    MARKET. 

The  most  prominent  among  these  is  the  Flame  Tokay, 
which,  on  account  of  its  handsome  color,  magnificent  berry 
and  bunch  and  good  shipping  qualities,  is  perhaps  the  most 


162  GRAPE   CULTURE   AND 

t 

profitable  where  it  succeeds  and  colors  well.  This  is  not 
everywhere  the  case,  however  ;  it  wants  a  warm  and  rather 
moist  soil,  cold  locations  will  not  do  for  it,  and  yet  in  the 
most  southern  locations,  it  is  also  apt  to  sunscald.  This  can, 
in  a  great  measure,  be  prevented  by  early  summer  pruning, 
and  I  shall  refer  to  the  subject  under  that  head. 

It  was  first  introduced  into  the  State  by  Wm.  McPherson 
Hill,  of  Sonoma  Co.,  and  I  cannot  find  it  in  any  work  on 
Grape  Culture  I  have  examined.  Vine  a  strong  grower, 
large  in  all  its  proportions,  wood,  joints  and  leaves.  Wood 
dark  brown,  straight,  with  long  joints;  leaves  dark  green,  with 
a  brownish  tinge,  slightly  lobed;  bunch  very  large,  sometimes 
weighing  eight  to  nine  pounds,  moderately  compact,  shoul- 
dered ;  berry  very  large,  oblong,  red,  covered  with  fine  lilae 
bloom,  fleshy  and  crackling,  firm  ;  ripens  late.  The  clip- 
pings of  small  and  imperfect  berries,  cut  out  when  packing, 
will  make  a  very  agreeable  white  wine,  with  pleasant  acid  and 
good  bouquet,  and  can  thus  be  utilized  to  good  advantage. 

Black  Damascus.  Synonym  Blauer  Damascener  Zwetsch- 
gentraube,  Ribier.  Vine  a  medium  grower,  wood  light  brown, 
striped  with  darker  brown,  short  jointed.  Leaf  round,  five 
lobed,  smooth,  light  green  above,  tomentose  beneath,  stem 
reddish  ;  bunch  large,  loose,  shouldered  ;  stem  large  and 
long,  woody  ;  berry  very  large,  oblong,  dark  blue,  covered 
with  lighter  bloom,  meaty,  skin  thick,  ripens  late. 

Emperor.  Vine  a  strong  grower  and  rather  a  shy  bearer, 
better  adapted  to  Southern  than  Northern  culture,  as  it  ripens 
very  late.  Wood  long  jointed,  brown,  half  rough  and  large, 
deeply  lobed.  Bunch  long  and  loose,  shouldered,  very  large; 
berry  oblong,  purplish  black,  covered  with  lighter  bloom., 
thick  skin,  firm. 

Black  Cornuchon.  Synonym,  Cornichon  Violett,  Eichel- 
traube.  Vine  a  strong  but  stocky  grower,  with  thick,  close 
jointed,  brown  wood.  Leaf  large  and  thick,  deeply  lobed,  dark 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  ^  163 

green  above,  grayish  green  and  tomentose  below,  five  lobed, 
young  shoots  light  green,  with  tomentose  points.  Bunch  very 
large,  loose,  shouldered,  with  long  stems  and  drooping  ;  berry 
large,  long,  dark  blue,  with  lighter  dots,  fleshy,  thick  skin, 
very  late. 

Rose  of  Peru.  This  is  a  very  handsome  and  productive 
grape,  of  good  quality,  but  does  not  carry  quite  as  well  as 
some  other,  vine  a  strong  grower,  resembling  Mission,  with  dark 
brown,  short  jointed  wood;  leaf  deep  green  above,  lighter 
green  and  tomentose  below.  Bunch  very  large,  shouldered, 
rather  loose;  berry  round,  large,  black,  with  firm  and  crack- 
ling flesh,  ripens  rather  late. 

Gros  Colman.  Synonym  Dodrelaba.  Vine  a  very  strong 
grower,  long  joints,  dark  brown  wood.  Leaf  very  large  and 
thick,  more  broad  than  long,  slightly  lobed,  dark  green  above, 
white  and  woolly  below,  young  shoots  tomentose.  Bunch 
heavy,  broadly  shouldered,  rather  loose  ;  berry  very  large, 
round,  black  with  blue  bloom.  Ripens  very  late  but  evenly, 
and  is  very  productive,  but  may  not  carry  so  well  as  some 
•others. 

Black  Morocco.  This  is  used  as  a  shipping  grape  further 
South,  not  adapted  to  the  North,  where  it  ripens  very  late  and 
unevenly.  Vine  a  straggling,  drooping  grower,  with  numerous 
laterals,  which  generally  bring  an  abundance  of  second  crop, 
leaf  thin,  deeply  lobed,  and  serrated,  dark  green  and  shining, 
Bunch  very  large,  rather  compact,  heavily  shouldered;  berry 
very  large,  black,  fleshy,  of  rather  poor  quality. 

Muscat  of  Alexandria.  Synonym  Moscatel  Gordo  Blanco, 
weiser  Muscat,  Damascener,  etc.  It  is  yet  a  disputed  point 
in  this  State,  whether  Muscat  of  Alexandria  or  Muscatel 
Oordo  JBlanco  are  the  same.  In  the  books  on  grape  culture 
they  are  called  identical,  and  I  can  see  no  difference  here. 
While  this  is  the  leading  raisin  grape,  here  and  abroad,  it  is 
also  a  very  important  shipping  grape,  as  it  carries  well,  looks 


164  GRAPE   CULTURE   AND 

well,  and  many  admire  its  peculiar  flavor.  It  can  also  be 
utilized  to  make  the  well  known  sweet  Angelica  wine,  or 
rather  Cordial,  for  which  the  clippings  of  small  berries  could 
be  used  when  packing  and  making  raisins.  Vine  a  short, 
rather  straggling  and  bushy  grower,  well  adapted  to  short  stool 
pruning,  as  it  forms  rather  a  bush  than  a  vine,  wood  gray,  with 
darker  spots,  short  jointed.  Leaf  round,  five  lobed,  bright 
green  above,  lighter  green  below,  young  shoots  a  bright  green. 
The  laterals  produce  a  second  and  even  a  third  crop,  and  the 
second  crop  will  often  ripen  to  be  fit  for  shipping.  Bunch 
long  and  loose,  shouldered;  berry  oblong,  light  yellow  when, 
fully  mature,  transparent,  covered  with  white  bloom,  fleshy,, 
with  thick  skin,  very  sweet,  and  a  decidedly  musky  flavor 
liked  by  many,  and  disliked  by  others. 

Malaga,  Synonym,  Weisner  Damascener,  frueher  weisser 
Damascener.  Vine  a  strong  grower,  wood  reddish  brown,  short 
jointed.  Leaf  medium,  leathery,  smooth,  deeply  lobed,  light 
shining  green  above.  Bunch  very  large,  loose,  shouldered, 
long,  stem  long  and  flexible;  berry  very  large,  oval,  yellowish 
green,  covered  with  white  bloom,  thick  skin,  fleshy.  Ripens 
rather  early  and  also  makes  good  raisins.  ~. 

Verdal.  Synonym  Cheres,  Malvoisie  de  Sitjo.  Vine  a 
strong  grower,  long  joints.  Leaf  large,  deeply  lobed,  tomentose ;. 
bunch  short,  heavily  shouldered.  Berry  oblong,  yellowish 
green  covered  with  fine  bloom,  ripens  late,  very  productive. 

White  Cornichon.  Synonym  Cornichon  blanc,  weisse  Eich- 
eltraube.  Vine  a  strong  but  short  jointed,  stocky  grower,  light 
brown  with  darker  buds.  Leaf  long,  thin,  deeply  lobed,  light 
green  above,  tomentose  below.  Bunch  very  large,  loose,  with 
long  drooping  shoulders.  Berry  oblong,  golden  yellow,  with 
light  dots,  thick  skin,  fleshy  and  transparent,  ripens  late. 

The  Sultana  has  been  described  among  the  wine  grapes. 
It  makes  very  fine  seedless  raisins,  but  they  do  not  seem  to 
sell  as  well  as  the  Muscatel,  very  likely  on  account  of  their 


WINE-MAKING   IN   CALIFORNIA.  165 

small  size.  The  white  and  black  Corinth,  from  which  the 
Zante  Currants  are  made,  do  no  seem  reliable  here,  and  so 
far  have  not  proved  profitable. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

CULTIVATION  AND  TREATMENT  DURING  THE  FIRST  AND  SECOND 
SUMMER. 

After  the  vineyard  has  been  planted,  it  should  be  kept  well 
cultivated,  the  surface  kept  loose  and  mellow  by  frequent  stir- 
ring with  plow,  cultivator  and  harrow;  it  is  the  only  method 
by  which  moisture  can  be  kept  up,  and  the  vines  can  live 
and  grow  freely.  If  the  soil  has  been  well  and  deeply  prepared, 
it  will  need  no  deep  plowing  the  first  summer,  unless  late 
rains  have  hardened  it  down  after  planting.  It  is  generally 
sufficient  in  all  ordinary  soils  to  run  a  two  horse  sulky  culti- 
vator, in  which  the  shares  are  so  arranged  that  the  two  mid- 
dle ones  take  one  side  of  the  row  each,  while  the  horses  also- 
walk  one  on  each  side  of  the  row,  (or  straddle  it,  as  the  com- 
mon expression  is).  If  the  operator  is  careful,  he  can  come 
very  close  to  the  vines,  and  by  setting  the  shares  or  shovels 
so  that  they  will  throw  the  ground  slightly  towards  the  vines,, 
they  will  get  loose  earth  around  them.  Should  the  ground 
have  become  hardened,  one  of  the  numerous  vineyard  gang 
plows  will  have  to  be  run  through  the  row,  or  if  this  is  not 
available,  a  one  horse  plow  can  be  used,  though  this  is  much 
slower  work.  One  of  the  most  convenient  gang  plows  for 
vineyard  work  is  (Fig.  12.)  manufactured  by  H.  Hortop,  Ruth- 


166 


GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 


FIG.  12. 

erford,  Napa  Co.,  who  is  a  good  mechanic,  and  living  in  the 
midst  of  the  main  wine-growing  district,  has  had  a  chance  to 
study  the  wants  of  the  wine  growers.  It  has  two  shares,  and 
in  fair  soil  can  be  drawn  by  one  good  pair  of  horses.  The 
shares  used,  Oliver  No.  8,  can  be  taken  off  and  used  for  sin- 
gle plow.  The  plow  is  calculated  to  finish  four  furrows  in 
a  round,  going  up  on  one  side  of  the  row,  throwing  the  ground 
to  the  middle,  and  returning  on  the  other  side  in  plowing 
from  the  vines.  The  wheel  in  front  regulates  the  depth. 
By  plowing  one  furrow  with  single  plow  close  to  the  vines 
the  row  is  finished.  In  plowing  to  the  vines  the  single  plow, 
or  one  horse  plow,  is  used  first,  throwing  the  ground  to  the 
vines,  and  one  round  with  the  gang  plow,,  going  up  on  the 
right  hand  side  and  returning  on  the  same  row  will  finish  it. 
Fig.  13  is  a  plow  for  deep  tillage,  made  by  the  same  par- 
ty, for  breaking  ground  for  vineyards.  It  is  very  strong,  will 
stand  the  draught  of  six  horses  and  mules,  and  calculated  to 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA. 


167 


run  sixteen  to  eighteen  inches  deep.     Where  the   soil  is  not 
too  tenacious,  this  will  be  found  to  save  time  and  labor. 


FIG.  13. 


FIG.  14. 


168  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

(Fig.  14).  Cultivator  for  two  horses,  to  follow  the  plow  in 
later  cultivation,  also  made  by  the  same  party.  The  shares 
with  small  mouldboards  at  the  sides  work  like  small  plows, 
throwing  the  ground  to  the  vines,  can  be  changed  ad  libitum 
for  the  longer  pointed  shares,  also  for  a  weed  cutter  blade,  to 
be  attached  to  the  shanks  behind,  to  extend  all  the  way 
across,  with  three  cultivator  shares  in  front  of  it  to  loosen  the 
soil.  This  is  very  useful  for  late  cultivation,  especially  where 
the  morning  glory,  that  pest  of  California  vineyards,  prevails. 

Either  the  harrow  or  the  clod  crusher  should  follow  the 
plow  or  cultivator  if  the  ground  is  at  all  lumpy,  to  break  the 
clods  and  make  a  mellow  and  even  surface.  The  later  this  is 
kept  up  in  summer  the  better  will  be  the  growth  on  the  vines; 
they  will  grow  all  the  better  if  cultivated  all  summer,  and 
they  will  pay  well  for  liberal  treatment  by  early  and  abundant 
crops. 

If  resistant  vines  have  been  planted,  to  be  grafted  when 
strong  enough,  they  will  need  no  pruning  the  following  winter, 
as  it  will  be  just  as  well,  and  make  them  stockier  and  stronger, 
to  let  them  grow  unchecked.  They  will  also  need  no  stakes, 
as  vines  which  are  not  irrigated,  make  but  a  small  growth  the 
first  summer,  until  the  roots  have  become  firmly  established. 
If  viniferas  have  been  planted,  however,  or  resistant  vines  for 
direct  production,  such  as  Herbemont,  Rulander,  and  Le- 
noir,  the  young  vine  may  be  cut  back  to  two  buds  of  its  last 
summer's  growth,  and  should  also  have  a  stake  for  future 
training.  Where  redwood  is  available,  that  is  the  best  and 
cheapest,  as  it  works  easy,  and  is  very  durable.  The  length 
of  the  stake  to  be  used  will  depend  on  the  variety  planted. 
For  Zinfandel,  Green  Hungarian,  Mataro  and  other  varieties 
adapted  to  stool  or  short  pruning,  (which  some  call  goblet 
pruning)  a  stake  of  four  feet  is  amply  high  enough,  and  this 
can  generally  be  removed  the  fifth  or  sixth  year,  as  the  vine 
will  support  itself  then.  For  varieties  requiring  long  pruning 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  16^ 

five  and  even  six  foot  stakes  are  necessary,  and  will  be  found 
most  economical  in  the  end,  as  the  vines  will  pay  for  the  ad- 
ditional cost  of  the  stakes  in  their  first  seasons  bearing.  The 
comparative  price  of  the  stakes  is  here  about  as  follows,  at  the 
lumber-yards  : 

4  foot  stakes,  sawed,  \\  inch  diameter,  per  1000 $16  00 

5  "       "  "       \\     "  "          "        "   23  00 

6  "       "  "        2      "  "          "        "  34  00 

If  we  also  count  in  the  additional  cost  in  hauling  and  hand- 
ling, we  will  have  about  2  %  cents  more,  for  6  feet  than  4  feet 
stakes.  Two  pounds  of  choice  grapes  additional  the  first 
season,  Will  pay  for  this,  and  square  the  account,  with  the 
additional  product  every  season,  which  at  a  Low  calculation 
will  be  5^)  per  annum  in  favor  of  the  longer  stakes. 

Drive  the  stakes  on  the  side  of  the  vines  from  which  you 
have  your  prevailing  winds  in  summer.  Of  course  they  should 
be  pointed,  and  can  then  be  driven  with  a  sledge  hammer  or 
wooden  maul,  when  the  ground  is  soft  in  winter.  They 
should  be  in  the  ground  from  15  to  18  inches,  so  that  a  six 
foot  stake  would  stand  about  4^  feet  above  the  ground.  If 
the  vines  have  made  but  little  growth,  the  staking  may  be 
postponed  until  the  second  year,  and  the  young  vine  tied  to 
the  marker  the  second  summer,  The  best  material  for  tieing 
in  summer  are  the  leaves  of  the  Phormium  tenax,  or  New 
Zealand  flax,  which  can  be  torn  into  strips,  and  are  very  flex- 
ible and  strong.  The  leaves  of  the  common  Dracena  (Dra- 
cena  Draco)  or  Dragon  tree,  answer  about  equally  well.  In 
fact,  all  the  Dracenas  and  Yuccas  furnish  excellent  tying  ma- 
terial, better  than  the  common  grape  twine  now  in  use,  and 
not  near  so  expensive.  Every  vineyardist  should  plant  some 
of  these,  especially  of  the '  Phormium,  which  is  gratuitously 
distributed  by  our  State  University.  They  are  all  fine  orna- 
mental plants,  and  only  the  dead  or  dying  leaves  need  be  used. 

The  second  summer,  our  first  operation  must  be  the  plow- 


170  GRAPE   CULTURE   AND 

ing.  Some  of  the  vineyard  gang  plows,  described  before,  are 
available,  they  can  be  used  for  the  work  in  the  centre  of  the 
rows,  setting  the  share  on  each  side  so  that  they  will 
throw  the  ground  together  in  the  centre,  and  away  from  the 
vines.  If  only  a  common  two  horse  plow  can  be  used,  com- 
mence by  plowing  a  furrow  exactly  in  the  centre  of  the  row, 
then  in  returning,  throw  the  next  furrow  against  it,  and  from 
the  row.  Go  down  on  the  other  side,  throwing  the  furrow  on 
the  first,  and  away  from  the  row.  Then  finish  up  with  a  one 
horse  plow,  in  the  same  manner,  as  close  as  you  can  come 
without  injuring  the  vine,  letting  the  horse  walk  in  the  furrow 
plowed  before.  This  will  leave  but  a  narrow  strip  of,  say  six 
inches,  which  can  easily  be  finished  with  hoe  or  spade.  The 
two  pronged  German  hoes  or  karsts  are  a  good  implement  for 
that  purpose.  Even  where  the  gang  plow  has'  been  used,  it 
will  always  be  well  to  finish  with  the  one  horse  plow,  as  it 
admits  of  closer  and  more  careful  work.  The  plowing  in  the 
centre  can  vary  from  4  to  6  inches  in  depth,  according  to  the 
nature  of  the  soil.  Close  to  the  vines,  3  or  4  inches  will  be 
sufficient  ;  and  the  hoeing  or  spading  should  not  be  deeper 
than  to  break  the  hard  crust  around  the  vine,  caused  by  the 
winter  rains,  not  deep  enough  to  injure  the  roots. 

Follow  the  plow  with  a  vineyard  harrow,  of  which  a  six  foot 
Acme  pulverizer  is  one  of  the  best,  or  a  revolving  harrow, 
which  will  smooth  and  pulverize,  and  destroy  the  weeds  at 
the  same  time.  These  operations  should  be  performed  as 
soon  as  it  is  dry  enough  in  early  spring,  so  that  the  ground 
will  work  well.  We  often  have  a  spell  of  good  weather  in 
winter,  which  may  be  taken  advantage  of.  Always  try  to  be 
ahead  with  your  work,  drive  it,  when  you  can,  so  that  it  will 
have  no  chance  to  drive  you.  Plowing  in  winter,  however, 
should  always  be  done  parallel  with  the  hillside,  if  on  sloping 
ground,  as,  if  plowed  up  and  down  hill,  the  spring  rains  are  apt 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  171 

to  make  deep  washes,  where  they  have  the  furrows  as  so  many 
gutters. 

When  this  plowing,  hoeing  and  harrowing  is  done,  we  can 
cross  plow,  that  is,  if  the  first  plowing  has  been  done  from 
East  to  West,  we  now  plow  North  and  South.  Here  we  re- 
verse the  operation,  take  the  one  horse  plow  first  and  throw 
the  ground  against  the  vines;  taking  care,  however,  not  to 
cover  them.  Then  we  follow  with  the  two  horse  plow,  or 
gang  plow,  and  finish  out  the  middle,  so  that  every  inch  of 
soil  in  the  vineyard  is  stirred  when  this  is  done.  This  will 
put  the  soil  in  good,  mellow  condition,  and  the  finishing  is 
given  by  taking  the  clod  crusher  or  drag  crossway  over  the 
rows,  which  breaks  all  lumps,  and  fills  up  the  middle  furrow 
somewhat,  leaving  our  vines,  when  these  operations  are  com- 
pleted, in  a  bed  of  mellow  earth,  where  they  can  grow  and 
flourish.  The  young  weeds  and  vegetation  turned  under  serve 
as  fertilizers,  and  at  the  same  time  have  a  tendency  to  loosen 
the  soil.  Cultivating  from  time  to  time,  as  the  weeds  may  begin 
to  grow,  and  the  soil  requires  stirring,  as  well  as  cutting  down 
the  weeds  which  may  grow  around  the  vines  with  a  light  hoe 
where  the  cultivator  cannot  reach  them,  will  finish  the  culti- 
vation for  the  summer.  I  reiterate  again,  if  you  have  the 
time,  cultivate  freely ;  you  can  not  overdo  this.  Your 
vines  will  well  repay  any  extra  trouble  you  may  take  with 
them,  by  additional  growth  and  fruitfulness. 


172  GRAPE  CULTURE    AND 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

•CULTIVATION,      PRUNING,      AND      TRAINING      THE     THIRD     AND 
FOURTH    YEAR. 

The  cultivation  will  be  essentially  the  same,  although,  as 
the  vines  increase  in  size,  we  cannot  come  so  close  to  them 
with  the  plow,  and  therefore  must  hoe  somewhat  more.  But 
as  pruning  and  tying  in  larger  vines  must  be  done  before  cul- 
tivating, we  will  consider  this  principally,  following  up  with 
summer  pruning  or  pinching,  and  tying  the  young  growth  in 
summer. 

STOOL  OR  SPUR  PRUNING  (goblet  pruning). 

We  have  many  varieties  for  which  this  is  a  very  convenient 
and  easy  way  of  training,  and  which  will  with  this  mode  of 
treatment,  the  simplest  of  all,  produce  abundant  crops. 

VARIETIES  ADAPTED  TO  THIS  TRAINING. 

Marsa?ine,  Green  Hungarian,  Clairette  Blanche,  Victoria 
Chasselas,  Burger,  Folk  Blanche,  Palomino,  Zinfandel,  Ma- 
faro,  Refosco,  Gamay  Teinturier,  Blauer  Portugieser,  Flame 
Tokay,  Gros  Colman,  Muscat  of  Alexandria,  White  Cor- 
nuchon,  and  of  the  old  varieties,  Mission  and  Malvasia.  Of 
course,  there  may  be  many  others,  but  t  my  experience  does 
not  warrant  me  in  recommending  them  for  this  treatment. 
Four  foot  stakes  will  be  sufficient  for  them,  and  they  can  be 
put  in  in  most  cases  when  the  vines  are  pruned. 

The  proper  time  for  pruning  is  when  the  leaves  have  dropped 
in  fall,  and  all  during  the  winter  months,  as  our  winters  are 
not  severe  enough  to  damage  the  wood  or  buds.  The  sooner 
we  commence  with  it  the  sooner  our  vineyards  will  be  ready 
for  the  plow.  Some  defer  it  until  late,  as  a  preventative 


WINE-MAKING   IN   CALIFORNIA.  173 

against  late  frosts,    but  I  hope  to  show  my  readers  a  better 
method  under  that  heading. 

We  will  suppose  our  young  vine  to  have  at  least  one  good 
stocky  cane  of  three  to  five  feet  long.  This  we  cut  back  to 
two  feet,  about  half  an  inch  above  a  bud,  making  a  slanting 
or  vertical  cut  above  the  bud.  (Fig.  15)  shows  the  vine, 


FIG.  15.  FIG.  16. 

the  cross  line  indicating  where  to  prune.  (Fig.  16)  shows  it 
pruned,  staked  and  tied.  For  the  upper  tying  I  have  found 
annealed  wire  No.  16  the  best,  most  convenient,  and  cheap- 
est material.  It  can  be  used  several  years,  is  easily  applied, 
quicker  than  any  other,  as  the  wire  is  cut  to  the  desired 
length  with  a  cold  chisel,  tied  in  convenient  bundles,  and  the 
two  ends  are  simply  hooked  into  each  other  by  a  quick  twist 
with  the  fingers.  It  is  just  as  easily  taken  off,  pulled  straight, 
and  used  another  year;  and  costs  ten  and  one-half  cents  per 
pound.  Care  must  be  taken  not  to  apply  it  too  tight,  so  as 
to  allow  for  the  growth  and  expansion  of  the  vine,  as  it  will 
cut  into  the  wood  and  bark  if  drawn  tight.  This  will  not 
break  through  theichafing  of  the  vines  in  strong  winds  against 
the  stakes,  and  is  much  cheaper  than  grape  twine  and  better. 
Always  tie  just  below  the  upper  bud,  so  as  to  keep  the  vine 
firmly  to  its  place.  If  tied  lower,  the  growth  above  the  tie 
will  cause  the  vine  to  lose  its  balance  and  lop  over,  there- 
by making  an  ugly  bend,  where  it  is  apt  to  break  off.  For 


174  GRAPE   CULTURE  AN]) 

the  lower  tie  either  the  Phormium  tenax,  Drcena  leaves,  or 
the  golden  willow,  (Salix  Aurea),  can  be  used,  of  which  each 
grape  grower  ought  to  make  a  plantation  along  the  ravines 
and  gullies,  where  they  will  not  take  up  any  room,  and  can 
be  cut  every  year;  the  young  twigs  are  very  soft  and  pliable. 
The  silver  leaved  willow,  growing  wild  on  many  of  our  streams, 
is  equally  tough  and  serviceable.  For  want  of  cheaper  and 
better  material,  use  grape  twine.  Wire  is  not  advisable  for  the 
lower  tying,  as  it  will  cut  into  the  vines.  The  young  resistant 
vines,  if  they  have  attained  a  diameter  of  from  half  an  inch 
to  three  quarters,  should  also  be  grafted,  as  described  before, 
in  the  chapter  on  grafting.  April  and  May  will  be  found  the 
best  time  to  do  this. 

When  the  vines  have  been  pruned  and  tied  as  indicated 
above,  they  will  bring  their  strongest  shoots  or  branches  from 
the  upper  buds.  Of  these,  two  or  three  of  the  strongest 
should  be  left,  to  form  the  future  head  or  stool ;  if  the  vine  is 
rather  weak,  leave  but  two  ;  if  stronger,  three,  all  the  rest 
which  may  appear  from  the  lower  buds,  should  be  rubbed  off. 
It  will  be  found  advantageous  to  pinch  off  the  tops  of  the  re- 
maining, when  they  have  grown  about  a  foot ;  they  will  then 
throw  out  laterals,  and  become  more  stocky  and  bushy;  espe- 
cially is  this  advisable  in  windy  locations,  as  the  winds  have 
less  power  on  many  shorter  shoots,  than  on  a  few  long  ones. 
Besides  it  shades  the  vine  and  the  fruit,  and  prevents  sun- 
scalds  ;  as  the  laterals  always  come  from  the  axils  of  the 
leaves  opposite  the  bunch  and  thus  shade  it.  But  do  not  fol- 
low late  summer  pruning,  lopping  off  the  woody  shoots  with 
knife  or  side,  which  is  unfortunately  practiced  too  much.  It 
is  barbarous  to  the  vine,  causing  the  cane  to  die  back,  and 
the  fruit  to  ripen  unevenly.  The  sooner  summer  pruning  can 
be  done,  the  more  beneficial  it  is  to  the  vine  ;  and  besides,  it 
is  done  so  much  more  rapidly  and  easy.  In  half  a  minute  a 
man  (or  woman  either)  can  go  over  a  large  vine  in  May  or 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA. 


175 


June,  at  the  same  time  rubbing  out  all  barren  and  superfluous 
shoots  (suckering).  When  the  foliage  is  once  fully  developed, 
it  is  much  more  difficult  to  look  through  the  vine  and  do  the 
proper  thinning,  besides  the  first  will  develop  so  much  more 
evenly  and  perfectly.  In  fact,  winter  and  spring  pruning  are 
but  the  beginning  of  the  training  ;  if  not  followed  by  judicious 
summer  pruning  and  thinning,  it  is  incomplete.  The  fourth 
winter  or  spring  we  find  our  vine  with  two  or  three  strong 
shoots  from  the  upper  buds,  presenting  a  miniature  tree  or 
bush.  These  we  cut  back  again  to  three  buds  each  as  shown 
in  Fig  1 7  at  the  cross  lines,  and  tied  to  the  stake,  as  in  Fig.  1 8. 


FIG.  17. 


FIG.  18. 


We  call  these  spurs,  and  from  each  of  these  spurs  we  expect  at 
least  two  strong  shoots,  from  the  two  upper  buds  on  each.  As 
the  buds  on  the  vine  grow  in  triplets,  the  main  or  fruit  bud  in 
the  centre,  with  two  smaller  buds,  one  on  each  side,  it  is  often 
the  case  that  two  of  them  or  even  all  three  will  start  and  grow. 
Only  one,  and  this  the  strongest,  should  be  left  from  each  bud, 
all  others  rubbed  off,  nor  should  more  than  two  be  left  to  each 
spur,  so  that  we  double  the  amount  of  shoots  or  canes  we  had 
the  second  summer.  Summer  prune  as  the  summer  before, 
first  thinning  out  the  superfluous  shoots,  by  rubbing  or  pull- 
ing them  out  at  their  base,  and  then  pinch  the  remainder. 

12 


176  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

The  fifth  year,  we  double  again,  as  shown  in  Fig.  19,  which 
will  give  us  four  to  six  Spurs,  according 
to  the  strength  of  the  vine,  which,  for 
very  heavy  bearers  and  in  ordinary  soil, 
will  be  about  enough.  If  the  vine  is  very 
vigorous,  and  the  soil  strong,  however, 
we  can  keep  on  increasing  the  number  of 
spurs  even  to  twelve  ;  this  must  be  left  to 
the  discretion  of  the  intelligent  vintner,  ^ 
as  it  is  impossible  to  give  any  fixed  rule  as  to  number  of  buds 
to  be  left.  In  fact,  the  health  and  vigor  of  the  vine  depend 
largely  on  pruning  according  to  individual  strength.  As  long 
as  a  vine  makes  a  vigorous,  well  ripened  growth  of  wood, 
ripens  its  fruit  evenly  and  well,  developing  the  full  amount  of 
sugar,  it  has  not  been  overloaded.  But  when  the  growth 
decreases,  the  berries  and  bunches  become  smaller,  and  ripen 
unevenly,  it  has  been  overtaxed,  and  should  be  pruned 
shorter.  If,  on  the  contrary,  the  vegetation  is  too  rank,  the 
berries  abnormally  large,  it  shows  that-it  was  not  pruned  long 
enough,  and  it  will  suffer  easier  from  coulure  and  mildew,  its 
wood  will  not  ripen  so  well,  nor  be  so  fruitful.  The  results 
of  the  vintners  labors  depend  largely  on  his  nice  discrimina- 
tion in  pruning  and  summer  pruning.  A  man  who  is  not,  to 
a  large  extent,  able  to  judge  the  capacity  of  a  vine  when  he 
looks  at  it,  is  not  fit  to  prune  it,  and  will  do  more  harm  than 
good  in  a  vineyard.  My  rule  is,  to  prune  full  as  long  as  I 
think  the  vine  is  able  to  bear,  should  it  show  more  fruit  than 
I  think  it  is  well  able  to  bear,  I  thin  with  an  unsparing  hand 
in  summer  pruning.  It  is  always  easier  to  rub  off  a  superflu- 
ous shoot  or  bunch,  than  to  add  one  when  they  are  "  not 
there."  But  do  not  let  greed,  or  the  desire  of  an  immense 
crop,  stay  your  hand,  when  you  know  that  your  vines  have 
too  much.  Thin  out  evenly,  or  your  crop  will  be  poor  next 
year  and  the  following,  vines  will  feel  and  resent  such  abuse. 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  177 

If  you  want  a  sound  man,  able  to  do  his  faithful  days'  work 
every  day  when  mature,  do  not  overtax  the  boy,  willing  as 
he  may  be.  Just  so  with  the  vine.  This  will  apply  to  all 
modes  of  training  and  culture, 

When  we  have  fully  developed  our  vine,  say  the  sixth  year, 
.and  think  it  has  as  many  spurs  as  it  is  able  to  bear  well,  we 
prune  back,  that  is,  where  two  shoots  have  grown  on  a  spur, 
equally  strong  or  nearly  so,  we  cut  out  the  upper  just  above 
the  lower,  pruning  this  to  three  buds  again,  and  thus  we  ob- 
tain the  same  number  of  spurs  as  the  year  before.  The  reason 
why  we  cut  out  the  upper  is,  that  we  want  to  avoid  elonga- 
tion, but  keep  the  vine  at  nearly  the  same  dimensions,  which 
we  could  not  do,  if  we  left  the  upper,  and  cutaway  the  lower. 
As  far  as  possible  always  prune  to  an  outside  bud,  i,  e.  one 
pointing  from  the  center  of  the  vine,  as  we  want  to  keep  the 
head  as  open  as  possible.  The  rank  shoots  from  the  old 
wood,  watersprouts  or  suckers  as  they  are  generally  called, 
should  be  all  removed  in  summer  pruning,  unless  they  may 
be  needed  to  take  the  place  of  a  failing  spur  or  arm.  This 
completes  stool  or  goblet  pruning.  After  the  fourth  year,  the 
vines  are  generally  long  enough  to  support  themselves,  and 
the  stakes  may  be  dispensed  with,  to  be  used  somewhere  else. 

MEDIUM    OR    "HALF    LONG"    PRUNING. 

We  have  many  varieties  not  well  adapted  to  stool  or  spur 
training,  which  will  produce  well  with  a  medium  course. 
Some  varieties  are  so  constituted,  that  they  will  not  fruit  well 
from  the  first  iwo  or  three  buds  at  the  base  of  the  cane,  while 
they  will  produce  abundantly  from  the  fourth  to  tenth  bud, 
and  some  of  our  most  valuable  varieties  belong  to  that  class. 

Varieties  adapted  for  this  treatment.  Pedro  Ximenes, 
^generally  known  in  this  State  as  Sauvignon  Vert  or  Colombar) 
Chaceda  Gris,  Simillion,  Traminer,  Muscadelle  de  Bordelais, 
Chasselus  Fontainebleau  (Gutedel)  Chasselas  Violette,  White 
Elben,  Blaue  Elben.,  White  Muscatelier,  Grosse  Blaue,  Mon- 


178 


GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 


deuse,  Carignan,    Meunierr  Tannat,    Pred  de   Perdrix,  Petit 
Bouschet,  Rulander  (American). 

For  these  I  would  recommend  five  foot  stakes,  We  com- 
mence the  third  year,  by  leaving  one  cane,  a  foot  to  eighteen 
inches  long,  (15  will  be  about  a  medium),  pruning  and  tying 
precisely  as  for  stool  pruning.  We  leave  three  canes  or  shoots 
to  grow  from  the  three  upper  buds,  which  will  give  us  some- 
thing like  a  goblet  shape  to  commence  with,  and  summer 
prune  as  in  stool  pruning,  not  quite  so  short  however,  leaving 
at  least  eighteen  inches  of  the  young  growth.  Near  winter 
or  spring  we  cut  the  three  canes  obtained  to  about  15  to  18 
inches,  and  tie  to  the  stake  as  in  (Fig.  20),  making  the  upper 
tie  with  wire,  the  lower,  which  is  only  drawn  around  to  keep 
the  canes  from  spreading,  with  Phormium,'Dracena  leaves  or 
or  twine.  The  shoots  from  these  are  pinched  as  in  stool 
pruning,  but  one  shoot  from  the  base  of  each  cane,  left  un- 
pinched,  to  develop  fully  ;  as  from  it  we  expect  our  cane  for 
next  season's  bearing.  These  three  canes  will  each  bear  some 
fruit,  if  strong  enough,  but  should  not  be  overloaded.  Here 


FIG.  20. 


FIG.  21. 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  179 

again  the  discrimination  of  the  vintner  is  needed,  and  proper 
thinning,  if  necessary,  must  be  resorted  to. 

The  fourth  winter,  the  old  canes  which  have  borne  fruit 
last  summer,  are  cut  out,  and  replaced  by  the  young  canes 
from  the  base  which  were  left  unpinched,  always  leaving  a 
spur,  however,  of  say  two  buds,  from  the  lowest  branch  of 
the  old  cane.  (Fig  21)  shows  the  vine  pruned  and  tied.  As 
the  vine  has  become  stronger,  the  canes  can  be  left  longer, 
say  too  feet,  provided  the  vine  can  bear  it,  and  summer  prun- 
ing followed  as  before,  with  the  alteration  that  we  leave  the 
canes  for  next  season's  bearing  on  the  spurs  at  the  base  of  the 
canes.  This  system  is  followed  up,  and  is  simply  a  renewal 
training,  the  cane  from  the  spur  taking  the  place  of  the  cane 
or  arm  which  has  borne  last  season's  fruit. 

A  modification  of  this  treatment  is  sometimes  followed 
with  very  good  results,  and  makes  the  vine  self  supporting. 
Four  canes  are  grown  instead  of  three,  and  bent  together  at 
the  top,  so  as  to  make  a  globe  or  balloon.  A  wire  is  firmly 
tied  around  them,  and  if  the  canes  are  equal  in  strength  and 
equally  loaded,  the  fruit  hangs  mostly  in  the  middle  of  the 
globe.  This  method,  (Fig.  22)  has  some  advantages  and  some 

disadvantages.  The  circular  form 
in  which  the  canes  are  bent,  dis- 
tributes the  sap  more  evenly,  while 
with  the  other  method,  it  runs  more 
into  the  upper  buds  on  canes  and 
spurs.  Its  disadvantages  are,  that 
it  takes  more  room  in  the  vineyard, 
does  not  allow  as  close  working, 
and  unless  the  canes  are  of  very 
even  size,  they  will  not  balance 
well,  when  heavy  with  fruit,  but- 
pull  to  one  side.  We  want  economy 
*n  our  work'  especially  in  cultiva- 
tion, and  this  interferes  with  it  somewhat. 


180  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

LONG    PRUNING    AND    TRAINING. 

We  have  some  varieties  which  are  shy  bearers  even  with 
this  last  mode  of  training,  and  which  require  still  longer 
pruning  to  produce  paying  crops,  yet  are  so  valuable  that  we 
cannot  well  dispense  with  them.  For  these,  I  recommend 
another  variation,  which  I  have  practiced  with  splendid  re- 
sults,especially  on  /Kstivalis  varieties,  Herbemont,  Lenoir,  etc. 

Varieties  adapted  to  this  treatment.  Sultana,  Riesling, 
Franken  Riesling,  Yellow  Hosier,  Petit  Syrah,  Cabernet 
Sauvignon,  Cabernet  Frane,  Chauche  Noir,  Trusseau,  Em- 
peror, Herbemont,  Lenoir,  Nortons.  It. is  simply  a  modifi- 
cation of  medium  pruning,  as  described  before.  The  vine  is 
treated  the  same  way  the  third  year,  but  for  this  method,  six 
foot  stakes  are  needed,  and  the  three  canes,  started  at  about 
12  to  14  inches  from  the  ground,  are  left  somewhat  longer. 
The  fourth  season,  instead  of  cutting  out  the  bearing  canes 
of  last  year,  I  leave  these  for  permanent  arms,  to  last  as  long 
as  they  are  healthy  aud  sound,  I  cut  all  the  strong,  vigor- 
ous shoots  they  may  have,  which  have  fully  developed  fruit 
buds,  to  spurs  of  three  to  four  buds  each,  up  to  two  feet  and 
a  half  of  the  crown  or  head  of  the  vine.  This  will  give  say- 
three  to  three  and  a  half  feet.  From  here,  I  have  a  short 
cane  on  each  arm,  to  reach  to  the  top  of  the  stake,  and  tie 
firmly  with  wire,  with  a  strong  tie  of  Phormium  or  twine 
around  the  middle,  to  hold  them  to  the  stake,  and  prevent 
their  spreading.  The  next  pruning,,  I  leave  the  old  arms,  and 
from  each  of  the  spurs  I  select  the  strongest,  as  near  the 
base  as  possible,  pruning  it  to  three  or  four  buds;  so  that  for 
each  spur  of  the  summer  before,  I  have  another,  cutting  out 
the  balance.  The  young  cane  at  the  end  of  each  arm,  I 
either  replace  with  another,  or  leave  it,  and  cut  its  laterals 
also  to  spurs. 

All  varieties  I  have  handled 'have  produced  satisfactory 
crops  under  this  treatment,  except  the  Malbeck;  which  al- 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  181 

ways  suffered  from  coulure  to  such  an  extent  that  I  do  not 
think  it  will  pay  with  any  manner  of  training,  and  ought  to 
be  discarded.  Nor  do  I  think  we  need  it,  with  all  the  fine 
varieties  now  at  our  command.  There  are,  of  course,  many 
other  modes  of  training  in  vogue  in  France,  Germany,  and  air 
Europe,  as  well  as  the  trellis  method  adopted  in  the  Eastern 
States,  which  I  have  followed  and  advocated  there  for  many 
years.  But  the  trouble  with  most  of  them  is,  that  they  offer 
serious  obstacles  to  cultivating  both  ways,  and  as  labor  is 
high,  we  must  do  all  we  can  with  plow  and  cultivator,  which 
not  alone  saves  manual  labor,  but  offers  better  cultivation 
than  we  can  perform  by  hand.  No  hoe  or  spade  will  so  thor- 
oughly pulverize  and  mellow  the  soil  as  the  plow,  clod  crush- 
er, and  harrow,  where  they  can  be  used  both  ways.  For  this; 
reason  I  am  slow  in  following  or  recommending  any  method, 
of  training  which  will  only  allow  cultivation  one  way;  and  the 
advantages  it  offers  must  be  great  indeed  to  induce  me  to* 
adopt  it. 

THE  CHAINTRE  SYSTEM. 

This  is  one  of  the  systems  which  would  prevent  cultivation-, 
both  ways,  but  is  much  recommended  by  French  authorities,, 
as  very  much  increasing  the  product  per  acre,  and  necessitat- 
ing only  about  three  hundred  and  twenty-five  vines  to  the 
acre,  instead  of  three  thousand,  as  they  are  generally  planted 
there.  It  was  Denis  Lusseaudeau,  at  Chissay,  France,  who 
first  invented  and  tried  it,  and  it  is  enshusiastically  spoken  of 
and  explained  in  a  pamphlet  with  numerous  illustrations  by 
A.  Vias,  which  was  translated  into  English  for  the  State  Board 
of  viticulture,  and  published  among  their  transactions.  Any 
one  who  wishes  full  information  about  it  can  obtain  it  from 
the  Secretary,  Mr.  Clarence  J.  Wetmore,  who  has  tried  it 
himself,  and  thinks  it  well  adapted  to  such  varieties  as  are 
shy  bearers  and  much  subject  to  coulure.  The  vines  are 
pruned  in  a  peculiar  manner,  and  bent  over  as  the  name  im- 


182  rtRAPK  CULTURE  AND 

plies,  in  a  trailing  chain,  pruning  very  long,  as  the  rows  are 
planted  in  France  twenty  feet  apart,  and  the  vines  six  and  a 
half  feet  in  the  rows.  Fcr  cultivation  the  whole  vine  is  turned 
around,  laid  over  on  the  row,  and  when  the  ground  has  been 
plowed  the  vines  are  turned  back  again,  and  supported  by 
small  stakes  over  the  empty  space,  so  that  the  young  growth 
is  a  foot  from  the  ground.  They  also  claim  better  and  more 
even  ripening,  as  well  as  a  greater  amount  of  sugar,  for  this 
method.  Mr.  Wetmore  would  only  recommend  it  for  shy 
bearers,  and  especially  in  windy  locations.  Others  who  have 
tried  it  do  not  think  so  favorably  of  it.  The  pamphlet  issued 
with  the  second  annual  report  will  explain  the  method  fully. 
I  have  not  tried  it  for  the  reasons  given  above. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

DISEASES    OF    THE    VINE    AND  THEIR    REMEDIES. 

Fortunately,  the  vine  is  subject  to  but  very  few  diseases 
here,  as  that  terrible  scourge  of  the  Eastern  and  European 
vineyards,  the  Peronospora  Viticola,  or  Mildew  par  excellence, 
has  not  troubled  us  here,  and  I  do  not  think  it  ever  will,  as 
long  as  our  summers  remain  as  dry,  and  our  atmosphere  as 
pure  as  they  are  now.  The  Peronospora  generally  makes  its 
appearance  in  the  East  after  continued  rains,  and  murky,  sul- 
try weather,  and  then  often  destroys  two-thirds  of  a  crop  in  a 
few  days,  an  atmospheric  condition  which  I  have  not  as  yet 
observed  here.  The  Oidium  Tuckeri,  or  powdery  mildew, 
generally  appears  after  heavy  fogs,  followed  by  dry,  still  weath- 
er during  the  middle  of  the  day,  and  yields  readily  to  the  ap- 


WIN'E-MAXING  IN   CALIFORNIA.  183 

plication  of  sulphur,  which  does  not  stop  the  Peronospora, 
for  which  the  remedy  is  sulphated  copper  and  slacked  lime. 
Let  us  hope  that  it  may  never  trouble  us,  and  pass  it  by. 

Our  Chief  Viticultural  Officer,  Mr.  John  H.  Wheeler,  has 
recently  published  a  very  practical  treatise  on  the  "Oidium 
Tuckeri  and  the  use  of  Sulphur;"  which  covers  the  ground  so 
completely,  that  I  take  the  liberty  of  republishing  it  here  almost 
entire,  and  am  sure  that  those  of  my  readers  who  will  study 
and  follow  it  closely,  will  have  little  to  fear  from  the  disease. 
I  have  generally  found  one  application  sufficient,  either  at  or 
shortly  after  the  bloom,  but  the  vines  should  be  watched  later 
on,  even  until  the  berries  color,  and  if  the  spotted  leaves  and 
the  grayish  color  which  the  fruit  assumes,  are  observed,  a 
second  application  is  necessary.  To  the  varieties  subject  to 
it  outside  of  those  mentioned  by  Mr.  Wheeler,  I  will  add  the 
Mataro,  and  Marsanne.  Generally  speaking,  all  very  rank 
growers  are  more  subject  to  it  than  the  medium  or  slow  grow- 
ers, while  the  /Kstivalis  class  is  entirely  exempt  from  its  at- 
tacks. Sulphuring  is  also  a  partial  remedy  against  couture,  or 
dropping  of  the  bloom  or  berry,  (imperfect  setting  or  fructifi- 
cation) of  which  I  shall  treat  further  on. 


OIDIUM  (TUCKERI)  AND  THE  USE  OF  SULPHUR. 

OIDIUM.* 

The  oidium  (tiickeri)  is  a  vegetable  parasite  of  American 
origin.  It  attacks  all  growing  portions  of  the  vine  and  imparts 
to  the  leaves  a  chapped  appearance,  and  gives  them  a  whitish 
or  gray  color.  The  vine,  when  badly  affected,  has  a  blighted 
and  sickly  appearance  ;  the  young  leaves  and  tender  parts  be- 

*Frequently  and  improperly  confused  with  mildow,  which  it  is  not.  The 
true  mildiou  is  the  dreaded  Perono-pora  Viticola,  a  parasite  far  more  formidable 
than  the  disease  we  commonly  treat  with  sulphur  and  one  which  does  not  suc- 
cumb to  this  or  other  simple  remedies. 

The  misnomer  of  the  parasite  common  to  California  frequently  leads  to  a  con- 
fusion of  remedies — sulphate  of  copper  and  slacked  lime  is  the  remedy  for 
mildimi— but  one  not  necessary  for  our  oidium. 


184  GRAPK CULTURE    AND 

come  dried  and  roll  up,  attacked,  the  herbaceous  parts 
blacken,  cease  to  grow,  and  end  by  withering  and  drying  up. 
This  latter  extreme  is  rarely  attained  in  California.  The 
growing  berries  are  attacked  as  readily  as  other  parts,  giving 
the  whole  a  languishing  and  unhealthy  aspect.  The  young 
branches  also  present  blotches  of  a  powdered  nature  which 
ultimately  cover  the  greater  part  of  the  surface  exposed  to  the 
sun,  and  where  badly  affected  also  taking  on  a  whitish,  pow- 
dered and  eventually  chapped  appearance,  which  causes  them 
to  crack  open  and  cease  to  grow.  Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  the 
oidium,  unlike  other  fungus,  affects  the  crop  directly  as  well 
as  indirectly  through  damage  to  the  foliage.  The  parasite 
first  appears  abundant  in  June,  though  frequently  commencing 
its  attack  in  May,  at  or  after  the  time  of  flowering. 

The  conditions  favoring  the  oidium  are  moisture  and 
warmth,  the  latter  playing  the  most  important  part.  The 
moisture  here  meant  is  not  the  extremely  humid  condition  of 
the  atmosphere  which  appears  with  or  immediately  follows  a 
rain  or  heavy  fog  continue,  a  condition  often  incorrectly  named 
as  favorable  to  oidium,  but  merely  the  moisture  to  be  found 
in  sea  breeze  after  it  has  traveled  ten,  twenty  or  even  thirty 
miles  inland.  An  atmosphere  which  produces  a  light  dew  at 
night  is  sufficiently  moist  to  favor  to  the  utmost  the  propagation 
of  oidium.  Quite  different  in  this  respect  is  the  peronospora 
and  Anthracnose  which  require  the  deposition  of  heavy  rain, 
fog  or  excessive  moisture  to  produce  their  growth.  For  this 
reason,  I  believe,  California  has  been  comparatively  free  from 
the  true  Mildiou,  a  disease  which  of  late  years  in  France, 
where  summer  rains  are  frequent,  has  threatened  the  vine- 
yards to  as  great  an  extent  as  has  the-  dreaded  phylloxera. 

Our  principal  vegetable  parasite  thus  far  has  been  the  oidi- 
um, one  especially  favored  by  our  dry,  warm  climate,  and  one 
easily  destroyed  by  the  timely  application  of  sulphur. 

As  before  remarked,  excessive   moisture  is  unfavorable 


WINE-MAKING  IN   CALIFORNIA.  185 

the  propagation  of  oidium,  and  a  good  shower  will  do  much 
to  remove  and  destroy  the  germs. 

As  to  temperature,  .the  disease  begins  its  development 
where  the  average  of  day  and  night  runs  up  to  53°  F.;  it 
spreads  rapidly  at  70°  F.,  and  is  checked  in  its  growth  where 
the  thermometer  indicates  near  100°  F.  Above  100°  its 
damage  is  rapidly  diminished,  and  at  112°— a  temperature 
quite  common  throughout  the  interior  vineyard  districts  of 
California — the  germs  loose  their  vitality  and  the  effects  of 
the  disease  entirely  cease. 

To  be  sure,  where  vines  make  a  dense  growth  and  are 
trained  high  above  the  ground,  the  germs  may  be  so  sheltered 
in  shady  spots  as  to  escape  the  effects  of  the  heat.  Where, 
on  the  contrary,  the  vines  are  trained  along  or  close  to  the 
ground  and  receive  the  reverberated  in  addition  to  the  direct 
heat  of  the  sun,  the  manner  in  which  vines  should  be  trained 
— then,  the  high  temperature  above  named  accomplishes  a 
complete  extermination  of  the  parasite,  a  result  which-  has 
often  been  noted  in  Algiers  where  such  temperatures  are  fre- 
quent throughout  the  early  growing  period  of  the  vine. 

Let  it  be  borne  in  mind  generally  that  the  propagation  of 
the  oidium  and  other  vegetable  parasites  of  the  vtne  are  great- 
ly favored  by  trellises  and  high  training.  Short  pruned  vines 
and  those  trained  close  to  the  ground  are  most  exempt  from 
fungoid  diseases. 

A  hot  north  wind  will  sweep  the  oidium  from  a  vineyard 
well  exposed  to  its  effects.  This  forms  one  of  nature's  most 
common  remedies  in  California,  and  should  be  a  consolation 
to  those  who  may  otherwise  lose  by  it  in  the  grain  field. 

Some  varieties  of  vines  are  found  more  susceptible  to  the 
attack  of  oidium  than  others,  other  conditions  being  similar 

This  fact  should  influence  the  vineyardist  as  to  the  fre- 
quency of  Applying  the  remedy  and  the  amount  of  sulphur 
employed . 


186  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

Varieties  particularly  subject  to  the  effects  of  oidium  are  the 
(Muscat,  Chasselas,  Zinfandel,  Folle  Blanche,  Crabb's  Black 
Burgundy,  Teinturier,  Gamay,  Cabernet  Sauvignon,  Caber- 
net Franc,  Riesling,  Carignane,  Terret  andCinsaut.)  Among 
those  little  susceptible  are  the  Grenache,  all  of  the  true 
Pinots,  the  Alicante  Bouschet,  Petit  Bouschet,  Colombar, 
Sauvignon  blanc  and  the  Aramon.  The  American  grapes 
Vitis  Labrusca,  V.  Riparia  and  V.  Rupestris  are  but  little 
affected  by  oidium. 

REMEDIES. 

Many  substances  have  been  applied  principally  in  the  form 
of  powders — lime  has  been  extensively  employed,  and  it  has 
been  found  that  any  dust  effects  beneficial  results  on  the 
diseased  plant.  None  have  proved  so  efficacious,  however,  as 
sulphur  dust,  and  on  this  we  can  rest  our  perfect  reliance,  for, 
if  properly  applied,  it  affects  all  that  may  be  desired  in  the 
way  of  a  cure,  and  is  comparatively  inexpensive.  The  oidium 
is  a  disease  quite  easy  to  treat,  because  its  spores  and  growth 
are  confined  to  the  exterior  and  exposed  portion  of  the  plant, 
which  is  not  the  case  with  the  peronospera  viticola  and  some 
other  vegetable  parasites. 

THE    APPLICATION    OF    SULPHUR    AS    A    REMEDY. 

There  have  been  many  conflicting  and  erroneous  state- 
ments made  concerning  this  remedy,  its  application  and 
effects  as  applied  in  California.  Imperfect  and  hasty  gener- 
alizations, drawn  from  limited  local  experiences,  have  not  un- 
frequently  been  published  and  results  both  expensive  and 
wasteful  have  often  followed.  To  correct  the  wrong  impres- 
sions thus  formed  and  save  further  dispute,  it  seems  neces- 
sary to  treat  the  subject  in  a  somewhat  technical  manner,  the 
truth  on  some  points  of  which  it  seems  to  me  precludes  the 
possibility  of  further  dispute  as  to  kinds  which  should  be 
employed  ;  the  difference  in  the  effect  of  various  brands,  im- 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  187 

ported  or  domestic,  and  the  manner  and  time  best  for 
making  the  treatment. 

The  vineyards  of  California  consume  -annually  1,200  tons 
of  sulphur,  an  average  of  about  15  Ibs  of  sulphur  per  acre. 
None  of  this  sulphur  is  the  product  of  California  mines  or 
deposits  as  many  suppose.  For  three  years  previous  to  1887 
sulphur  sublimers  and  grinders  have  been  entirely  dependent 
on  countries  other  than  the  United  States  for  their  raw  mater- 
ial. There  has  of  late  years  been  no  sulphur  found  in  Cali- 
fornia which  could  pay  the  cost  of  mining,  refining  and  trans- 
portation to  San  Francisco,  and  be  sold  here  at  even  double 
the  present  cost  of  sulphur  imported  from  Sicily  or  Japan. 

Four  years  ago  California  received  small  quantities  of  sul- 
phur from  Nevada,  but  the  competition  of  cheap  labor  in  the 
Orient,  and  cheap  transportation  by  sea  soon  choked  out  the 
local  industry.  Considerable  promise  comes  to  the  home  in- 
dustry now  from  Utah,  where  large  deposits  are  being  worked, 
and  the  refined  product,  ground  and  sublimed,  are  being 
placed  on  the  California  market  at  the  same  figures  as  the  im- 
ported vineyard  sulphur  ;  or  that  prepared  in  San  Francisco 
from  the  imported  raw  material.  How  long  the  sulphur 
mines  of  Utah  will  continue  available  to  consumers  in  the 
United  States  will  depend  entirely  upon  railroad  freights, 
which  have  of  late  been  so  capricious  as  to  preclude  any  cer- 
tain future  dependence. 

To  show  the  comparative  insignificance  of  our  own  sulphur 
mines,  let  it  be  known  that  in  1880  there  were  mined  in  the 
whole  United  States  600  tons,  while  our  imports  for  1881 
aggregated  105,438  tons. 

This  latter  quantity  came  almost  exclusively  from  Sicily. 
Virtually,  the  Island  of  Sicily  furnishes  the  world  with  sul- 
phur, notwithstanding  Japan  is  now  her  most  formidable 
competitor  for  the  Pacific  Coast  of  North  America.  Sicily 
has  for  years  been  the  original  point  of  production  for  the  sul- 


188,  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

phur  used  in  vineyards  the  world  over,  and  whether  this  sul- 
phur sold  mostly  in  commerce  as  "  Sicily  seconds"  and  con- 
taining not  to  exceed  3%  oi  ash  impurities,  has  gone  first  to 
Marseilles  or  Antwerp  to  be  ground  or  sublimed  ;  or  whether 
it  has  come  to  New  York  or  California  to  be  ground  or  sub- 
limed, has  made  but  one  essential  difference  to  California 
vineyardists,  viz  :  All  sulphur  sublimed  without  the  United 
States  pays  a  duty  on  entering  our  posts  of  one  cent  per 
pound,  which  sometimes  makes  an  addition  of  nearly  50%  to 
the  selling  cost.  All  other  brimstone,  crude  or  ground,  ex- 
cept in  rolls,  pays  no  duty. 

1  desire  to  draw  particular  attention  to  this  difference  for 
the  instruction  of  those  who  have  with  this  as  with  California 
wine  in  past  years,  been  led  to  believe,  that  any  goods  bearing 
a  French  label  ar^  better  than  those  produced  at  home.  The 
case  is  a  parallel  to  that  by  which  our  wine  drinkers  were 
long  duped  by  French  labels. 

Some  may  claim  that  the  sulphur  ground  or  sublimed  in 
Europe  is  finer  than  that  prepared  in  California.  To  deter- 
mine this  I  have  examined  carefully  over  twenty  samples  of 
sulphur  which  I  have  been  collecting  and  carefully  sampling 
for  several  years  past,  with  the  following  results  :  Domestic 
preparations  of  sublimed  sulphur  have  averaged  as  fine  as 
those  from  Marseilles  or  Belgium.  Of  the  ground  sulphur, 
that  produced  in  California  has  generally  proved  the  finer, 
and  the  finest  of  all  prepared  by  either  method  was  ground 
sulphur  prepared  in  California. 

So  much  to  the  credit  of  the  home  industry.  I  have 
learned  direct  from  the  leading  importer  of  foreign  prepared 
sulphur  that  generally  the  Europeans  do  not  grind  as  fine  as 
is  the  practice  in  California  ;  but  that  if  California  markets  so 
demand,  it  may  be  prepared  as  fine  as  needed.  This  is  be- 
cause they  expect  us  to  use  sublimed  sulphur  if  sulphur  in'J  a 
fine  condition  be  needed.  They  care  little  about  the  import 


WINE-MAKING    IN   CALIFORNIA.  189 

duty  of  one  cent  per  pound  on  the  latter  so  long  as  they  are 
reimbursed.  Nor  is  it  their  business  or  care  whether  we  use 
one  variety  and  avoid  the  tax,  or  the  cheaper  with  equally 
beneficial  results.  - 

The  imports  of  sublimed  sulphur  to  a  single  merchant  in 
this  city  have  cost  California  vineyardists  in  the  past  three 
years  nearly  $15,000  duty,  no  benefits  of  which  have  accrued 
to  our  vineyards  ;  and  this,  a  loss  to  proprietors,  adds  another 
conspicuous  monument  to  the  long  and  unwholesome  prac- 
tice among  some  of  our  people  of  aping  the  French  in  every- 
thing. 

We  therefore  conclude  from  the  foregoing  that  "California 
sulphur"  means  sulphur  from  other  countries,  ground  or  sub- 
limed only  in  California  ;  and  that  for  economy's  sake,  if  any 
one  insist  on  a  foreign  article,  he  should  buy  the  ground  sulphur 
and  thereby  escape  the  duty  of  one  cent  per  pound. 

COMPARATIVE     VALUE     OF     GROUND     AND     SUBLIMED    SULPHUR 
FOR     VINEYARD    USE. 

This  much-  mooted  .question  has  been  carelessly  handled 
by  many.  First  let  us  comprehend  the  effect  of  any  sulphur 
distributed  in  the  vineyard.  Sulphur,  in  a  fine  condition, 
exposed  to  the  atmosphere,  'undergoes  a  partial  evaporation  ; 
the  vapor  produced  comes  in  contact  with  the  germs  ororgans 
of  the  oidiurn  and  accomplishes  their  destruction.  Evapora- 
tion is  therefore  the  result  desired.  This  evaporation  is  par- 
ticularly favored  by  exposure  to  the  suns  heat,  and  especially 
when  the  ambiant  temperature  reaches  70°  F  or  over. 

Now,  other  things  being  equal,  the  finer  the  sulphur  the 
greater  must  be  the  surface  exposed  and  consequently  the 
more  rapid  the  evaporation.  Evaporation  is  the  result  de- 
sired. Sublimed  sulphur  is  that  produced  by  boiling  crude 
brimstone  and  condensing  the  vapor  thus  formed  in  a  closed 
chamber.  In  cooling  the  vapor  the  sulphur  is  recovered  in 


190  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

little  round  globules.  Several  of  these  globules  are  usually 
attached,  and  form  a  string  in  appearance  when  magnified, 
much  resembling  a  string  of  beads.  The  sulpur  in  this  shape 
exposes  less  surface  than  could  be  produced  in  any  other 
form  ;  so  that  with  equal  fineness,  ground  and  irregular  par- 
ticles would  better  answer  our  purpose.  To  demonstrate 
this  practically,  two  samples  of  the  same  sulphur  accurately  de- 
termined in  weight,  one  ground  and  the  other  sublimed,  were 
exposed  to  the  same  heat  as  if  in  the  vineyard.  Samples 
selected  for  this  purpose  were  of  apparent  equal  fineness. 
The  same  were  weighed  from  day  to  dciy,  and  the  experiment 
repeated  several  times  ;  and  the  above  conclusions  were  am- 
ply born  out  in  every  weighing.  Not  only  did  the  sublimed 
or  flowers  of  sulphur  evaporate  less ;  but  it  also  showed  a 
more  rapid  formation  of  sulphuric  acid  than  the  ground  sam- 
ple, thus  furnishing  another  objection  to  the  use  of  sublimed 
sulphur  ;  one  which  its  exponents  have  frequently  and  incor- 
rectly urged  against  the  use  of  ground  or  triturated  sulphur. 

I  have  yet  to  know  of  any  considerable  damage  done  to 
vines  by  the  sulphuric  acid  existing  as  an  impurity  in  the  com- 
mercial article,  either  ground  or  sublimed  ;  though  some  have 
strongly  urged  the  presence  of  sulphuric  acid  as  an  objection 
to  ground  sulphur.  This  is  wrong,  as  there  is  every  con- 
dition to  favor  the  formation  of  sulphuric  acid  in  the  operation 
of  subliming  sulphur,  and  nothing  to  favor  such  formation 
in  the  grinding  process.  Specialists  who  have  made  this  mat- 
ter a  thorough  study,  corroborated  my  conclusionSi 

I  do  not  urge  this  as  an  objection  to  the  use  of  sublimed 
sulphur,  but  if  any  disadvantage  accrues  from  the  presence  of 
sulphuric  acid,  it  must  not  be  laid  at  the  door  of  the  ground 
sulphur.* 

In  connection  with  this  let  it  be  known  that  neither  sublim- 
ing nor  grinding  does  in  any  wise  alter  the  chemical  nature  of 

"The  presence  of  considerable  quantities  of  sulphuric  acid  may  be  detected  by 
the  lumpy  condition  which  results  from  its  presence. 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  191 

sulphur,  which  is  an  elementary  substance  and  unalterable 
chemically,  otherwise  than  by  combining  it  with  some  other 
element  or  compound.  It  is  not  changed  in  its  preparation 
as  above  named,  any  more  than  would  be  pure  lead  if  made 
into  shot  by  melting  or  by  being  cut  to  the  proper  shape.  The 
same  analogy  holds  true  as  to  its"  source — pure  lead  from  one 
mine  or  country  is  chemically  identical  with  that  from  any 
other  mine  or  country.  So  with  sulphur  from  Sicily,  from 
California  or  any  other  country.  This  I  state  for  the  benefit 
of  non-chemists,  some  of  whom  have  thought  prepared  sul- 
phur to  be  a  compound  altered  from  its  elementary  condi- 
tion and  hence  variable  in  strength. 

One  point  favoring  the  sublimed  sulphur  is,  that  in  prepar- 
ing it,  the  product  is  freed  of  the  ashy  impurity  existing  in  the 
crude  article  of  commerce,  to  the  extent  of  from  one  to  three 
per  cent.  This  impurity,  however,  is  a  neutral  volcanic  ash, 
which  works  no  injury  to  the  vine,  and  in  buying  ground  sul- 
phur can  only  be  estimated  as  a  loss  of  from  one  to  three  per 
cent. — a  loss  which  is  in  no  wise  commensurate  with  the  dif- 
ference in  price  of  the  two  forms,  ground  and  sublimed. 

We  find  European  authorities  of  the  present  date  unanimous 
in  the  opinion  that  finely  ground  or  triturated  sulphur  is  more 
suitable  for  vineyard  use  than  the  sublimed. 

Prof.  G.  Foex,  who  is  Director  and  Professor  of  viticulture 
at  the  National  School  of  Agriculture  at  Montpellier,  in  his 
"  Cours  Complet  de  Viticulture,"  published  in  1886,  says: 
"Formerly  only  sublimed  sulphur  was  employed  (in  the  vine- 
yards) because  it  contained  more  sulphurous  acid  ;  but  since, 
learning  that  the  effect  of  the  sulphur  on  the  oidium  is  due  to 
the  vapor  which  it  emits  at  an  elevated  temperature,  a  result 
obtained  as  well  with  ground  as  with  sublimed  sulphur,  the 
former  being  considerable  cheaper,  has  come  into  general  use. 

"Furthermore,  the  use  of  flowers  of  sulphur  is  seriously 
objectionable,  in  as  much  as  it  consists  of  little  globular  par- 

13 


192  "  GRAPE   CULTURE   AND 

tides  which  are  readily  lost  from  the  foliage  of  the  vine  under 
the  influence  of  light  breeze.  Its  application  affects  the 
workmen,  too,  with  a  trouble  known  as  ophtalmie  des  sulfreurs 
— affecting  the  eyes. 

"The  ground  sulphur,  on  the  contrary,  which  is  made  up 
of  angular  and  irregular  particles,  adhere  more  closely  to  the 
green  portions  of  the  vine  and  trouble  the  workmen  much 
less." 

M.  A.  Du  Boreuil,  M.  La  Forgue  and  others  express  the 
same  preference  for  finely  ground  sulphur. 

HOW    AND    WHEN    TO    APPLY    SULPHUR. 

Tor  very  small  vineyards,  the  dredger,  an  instrument  much 
resembling  a  large  pepper  box,  answers  well  enough,  especial- 
ly while  the  vines  are  young.  For  more  advanced  vineyards 
and  larger  areas,  the  bellows  should  be  used,  holding  from 
three  to  five  pounds  of  sulphur.  These  latter  are  furnished  by 
local  manufacturers  and  effect  a  considerable  saving  of  time, 
labor  and  material  over  the  dredger.  By  the  use  of  the  bel- 
lows, too,  the  sulphur  can  be  more  evenly  distributed.  A 
simple  open  nozzle  is  the  best ;  any  perforated  cover  for  this 
latter  is  apt  to  get  clogged  and  the  bell-shape  frequently  given 
to  it  does  not  spread  or  expand  the  sulphur  jet — a  purpose  for 
which  it  is  designed  but  fails  to  accomplish.  A  bent  nozzle 
is  more  of  an  encumbrance  tban  an  advantage.  The  simplest, 
strongest  bellows  of  good  size  will  prove  cheapest  and  best  in 
the  end.  With  this  tool  a  workman  will  sulphur  from  five  to 
eight  thousand  vines  per  day — vines  in  an  advanced  state  ot 
vegetation.  He  may  apply  as  many  pounds  of  sulphur  per 
day  with  other  instruments,  but  it  can  not  thus  be  so  evenly 
distributed,  nor  cover  the  same  area. 

The  powdered  sulphur  should  be  applied  so  as  to  lodge  as 
much  as  possible  on  and  near  the  growing  parts  of  the  vine. 
^This  secures  a  dense  sulphur  vapor  in  direct  contact  with  the 
diseased  organs.  Sulphur  on  the  old  stump,  or  even  on  the 


WJNE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  193 

•surface  ot  the  ground,  will  destroy  the  oidium,  but  a  larger 
quantity  would  be  required. 

Sulphur  falling  on  the  giound  is  by  no  means  lost,  but  a 
lesser  quantity  will  answer  if  lodged  on  the  leaves  and 
branches.  I>  has  been  stated  that  sulphur  falling  to  the 
earth  is  lost  by  its  effect  being  immediately  neutralized.  The 
sulphurous  acid  formed  is  neutralized,  but  the  vapor  of  sul- 
phur— the  active  disinfectant  is  not  neutralized,  nor  is  the  ef- 
fect of  the  sulphur  lost,  except  as  it  be  covered  up  and  hid 
from  the  sun  and  air. 

The  simplest  rule  as  to  the  time  for  applying  sulphur  is: 
"  Treat  the  vineyard  whenever  the  disease  makes  its  appear- 
ance." But  if  we  desire  to  apprehend  even  its  introduction, 
which  is  the  general  custom  in  California,  the  first  application 
should  be  made  at  or  about  the  time  of  flowering,  as  at  this 
period  the  disease  is  apt  to  attack  the  delicate  organs  of  fruc- 
tification and  render  the  vine  infertile.  Altogether  the  most 
favorable  results  have  been  obtained  by  sulphuring  at  the  time 
of  blossoming.  This,  .too,  is  one  of  the  methods  of  combat- 
ing coulure,  a  trouble  which  will  be  treated  later  on.  Young 
vines  do  not  require  so  frequent  sulphuring  nor  so  great  a 
•  quantity  as  vines  in  full  bearing.  The  former  should  be  sul- 
phured when  the  shoots  attain  a  length  of  a  few  inches;  and 
again,  later  on,  if  the  oidium  makes  its  appearance.  Bearing 
vines  should,  in  addition  to  the  treatment  at  blossoming,  re- 
ceive a  second  application  from  the  first  to  the  middle  of  June, 
.and  again,  later  on,  if  the  disease  makes  its  appearance. 

The  quantity  used  at  each  application  may  vary  with  the 
number  of  vines  per  acre,  and  should  be  governed  somewhat 
by  the  susceptibility  of  the  variety,  as  before  explained.  Less 
is  needed  for.  the  first  than  for  subsequent  applications,  when 
the  vines  attain  full  proportions.  The  quantity  commonly 
.used  in  California  .for  old  vines  subject  to  oidium,  is  about 


194  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

eight  pounds  per  acre  for  the  first  treatment,  and  from  twelve 
to  twenty  pounds  at  the  second  application. 

The  use  of  this  remedy  in  conformance  with  the  above  in- 
structions will  affect  a  great-saving  over  conventional  methods 
pertaining  at  present  in  California.  Not  unfrequently  our 
vineyardists  sulphur  in  weather  positively  prohibitory  to  the 
disease,  Varieties  but  little  liable  to  oidium,  situated  per- 
haps in  the  hottest  and  driest  interior  localities  and  trained 
low  to  escape  it,  often  receive  a  dose  which  goes  only  to  fer- 
tilize the  soil  and  stimulate  the  growth  of  the  vine. 

This  latter  function  is  one  which,  however,  must  not  be 
overlooked;  the  general  aspect  of  the  vine  is  always  improved! 
and  vegetation  greatly  stimulated  by  the  free  use  of  sulphur, 
A  small  percentage  only  of  the  sulphur  applied  vaporizes — the 
balance  works  into  the  soil,  becomes  slowly  oxydized  and  fi- 
nally unites  to  form  sulphates  of  the  alkalies  and  alkaline  earthsr 
which  are  in  substance  the  essential  ingredient  of  some  of  the 
best  fertilizers.  Still  it  is  well  to  know  whether  the  sulphur  is 
applied  for  the  cure  of  oidium  and  as  a  fertilizer,,  or  as  a 
fertilizer  only. 

The  most  favorable  hours  for  applying  sulphur  are  from 
eight  or  nine  o'clock  in  the  morning  to  the  middle  of  the  af- 
ternoon, preferably  from  9  A.  M.  till  2  p.  M.  The  sulphur 
which  comes  in  contact  with  dew  or  other  water  is  in  no  wise 
altered  thereby,  but  ceases  to  give  off  its  vapor  only  until  the 
water  evaporates,  and  thereby  exposes  its  surface  to  the  at- 
mosphere. A  rain  following  the  application  of  sulphur  does 
not  alter  this  element,  but  results  in  damage  only  in  removing 
the  particles  mechanically  from  the  foliage  of  the  vine  to  other 
places  more  remote  from  the  seat  of  disease. 

Any  wind  other  than  very  gentle  will  do  much  to  shake  off 
and  remove  the  sulphur  from  the  leaves.  A  windy  day  should 
therefore  be  avoided.  In  fact,  a  hot,  still  midday  is  best  in 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  195 

all  respects,  as  amply  proven  by  the  strong  odor  of  sulphur 
prevailing  at  the  time  ot  such  an  application. 

In  purchasing  sulphur,  its  quality  and  fineness  may  best  be 
determined  by  the  use  of  the  microscope.  The  weight  of  a 
given  bulk  will  establish  the  relative  fineness,  but  cannot  be 
used  in  comparing  sublimed  with  ground,  as  the  mechanical 
condition  of  the  two  are  different — sublimed  sulphur  is  in 
beaded  strings  and  occupies  more  space  than  ground  sulphur, 
much  as  shavings  are  of  greater  bulk  than  sawdust.  To  per- 
sons experienced  in  its  use,  the  fineness  may  be  determined 
by  the  feeling  —  almost  impalpable  it  should  be.  I  have 
never  known  this  sulphur  adulterated,  although  ground  sul- 
phur is  frequently  added  to  the  sublimed  to  enable  the  mer- 
chant to  sell  it  cheaper.  All  samples  of  Eastern  sublimed 
sulphur  examined  I  have  found  mixed  in  this  manner,  show- 
ing that  the  credit  of  ground  snlphur  has  sometimes  been  un- 
consciously extended  to  the  so-called  and  more  expensive  sub- 
limed. 

Where  the  question  of  purity  or  fineness  arises  with  any 
•vineyacdist,  samples  may  be  sent  to  this  office,  where  a  prompt 
determination  will  be  made  and  reported  without  cost  to  the 
applicant. 

To  further  substantiate  these  recommendations  of  the  ground 
•sulphur,  I  will  state  that  of  the  sulphur  used  of  late  years  in 
California  vineyards,  over  three-fourths  has  been  ground  sul- 
phur; and  I  have  y£t  to  know  of  anyone  employing  sulphur 
extensively  who  has  abandoned  the  ground,  or  even  that 
•ground  in  California,  for  the  foreign  prepared  or  sublimed  sul- 
phur, which  latter  sells  at  one  and  a  quarter  to  one  and  a  half 
•cents  higher  than  the  ground  or  triturated. 

Ground  sulphur  may  be  easily  distinguished  from  sublimed 
by  the  difference  in  color,  the  latter  always  shows  more  yel- 
3ow,  the  former  more  white  or  a  lighter  tint  of  yellow. 


19t)  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

COULURE    OR    IMPERFECT    SETTING. 

Some  varieties  are  constitutionally  and  inherently  inclined 
to  this  disease,  for  instance  the  Malbeck,  which  always  suf- 
fers from  it,  and  therefore  is  not  worth  cultivating  here.  In 
others,  it  arises  from  unfavorable  conditions  of  the  atmos- 
phere, improper  location  and  soil,  etc.  Among  those  most 
easily  affected  by  these  changes,  I  note  the  Zinfandel,  Muscat 
of  Alexandria,  Flame  Tokay,  Cabernet  Sauvignon,  Chaucne 
Noir,  the  Rieslings,  Gelber  Hosier,  White  Elben,  etc. 
With  these,  it  generally  follows  sudden  changes  of  tempera- 
ture; for  instance,  very  cool  weather  or  frost,  followed  by  hot 
northern  winds;  windy  locations  are  more  subject  to  it  than 
those  somewhat  protected,  etc.  Sometimes,  late  rains,  which 
keep  the  ground  cold  and  moist,  are  the  cause  ;  and  again, 
methods  of  pruning.  If  the  vine  has  been  pruned  too  short, 
rank  growth  and  coulure  are  almost  sure  to  follow;  and  vice 
versa,  if  the  vine  is  taxed  beyond  its  strength,  it  is  apt  to  set 
imperfectly.  While  we  may  not  be  able  to  control  atmos- 
pheric influences  entirely,  we  can  certainly  do  much  by 
pruning  properly,  taxing  the  vine  neither  too  much  nor  too 
little;  and  it  also  should  lead  us  to  be  careful  in  choosing 
our  location,  avoiding  cold,  damp  soils  and  exposed  loca- 
tions. No  doubt  we  can  also  prevent  it  to  a  certain  extent 
by  using  certain  fertilizers,  applied  just  before  the  bloom., 
Foremost  of  these,  where  it  can  be  had,  is  the  ammoniacal 
liquid,  which  can  generally  be  had  at  „ gas  works  for  very 
little  more  than  filling  into  casks,  and  which  is  the  cheapest 
and  best  fertilizer  I  know.  Dilute  each  gallon  of  the  liquid 
with  seven  gallons  of  water,  put  a  cask  on  a  low  wagon  or 
sled,  and  attach  a  hose  with  a  faucet  to  it.  Make  a  small 
hole  above  each  vine,  say  eighteen  inches  or  two  feet  from 
and  above  it,  and  apply  about  half  a  gallon  to  each  vine- 
Two  men  can  go  over  about  five  acres  in  a  day,  and  it  is 
wonderful  how  it  stimulates  the  vine  and  increases  the  size 


WINE-MAKING   IN  CALIFORNIA.  197 

of  the  berries,  while  the  cost  is  mainly  in  the  application. 
Sulphuring  at  time  of  bloom  is  also  a  partial  preventative, 
whether  its  evaporation  counteracts  the  deleterious  atmos- 
pheric influences,  or  through  its  action  as  a  fertilizer,  or  both,. 
I  do  not  pretend  to  decide,  but  there  is  no  doubt  in  my  mind 
as  to  its  beneficial  results.  Early  pinching  or  summer  prun- 
ing before  the  bloom  is  one  of  the  main  preventatives.  I 
think  I  am  also  warranted  in  saying,  that  grafted  vines  are 
less  subject  to  it  than  those  not  grafted;  and  as  French 
authorities  recommend  girdling  of  the  vine  or  shoot  as  a  pre- 
ventative, I  hold  that  grafting,  forming  a  temporary  obstruc- 
tion to  the  flow  of  the  sap  downwards,  has  a  tendency  to 
make  the  vine  set  better.  We  know  that  grafted  trees  of  any 
kind  set  their  fruit  better  than  seedlings;  it  is  reasonable  there- 
fore to  infer  the  same  of  the  vine.  Ringing,  or  twisting  a 
wire  temporarily  around  the  cane  or  shoot  early  in  spring, 
will  accomplish  the  same  result,  but  this  is  a  laborious  pro- 
cess, and  also  apt  to  injure  the  vine.  Binding  and  twisting 
the  canes  in  long  pruned  varieties,  or  bending  them  in  a  cir- 
cular hoop,  will  also  tend  to  prevent  coulure. 

Some  very  interesting  observations  on  coulure  in  San 
Diego  County,  by  Mr.  F.  G.  Morse,  of  the  State  University, 
can  be  found  in  the  Report  of  the  Viticultural  work  of  1885- 
1886,  by  Professor  Hilgard,  to  which  I  refer  those  of  my 
readers  who  wish  to  inform  themselves  further. 

Red  Leaf,  (Spanish  Measles),  Anthracnose,  Pocken  des 
Wdnstocks.  Whether  what  we  know  by  the  two  first  names 
is  identical  with  what  is  known  in  France  as  Anthracnose,  in 
Germany  as  Pocken  des  Weinstocks,  I  am  not  quite  sure,  but 
presume  they  are  identical.  It  generally  appears  about  mid- 
summer, and  I  have  mostly  seen  it  on  old  Mission  vines, 
which  had  been  pruned  to  the  stool  shape  for  quite  a  number 
of  years,  and  on  which  the  saw  had  been  formerly  used. 
The  disease  often  attacks  but  a  single  spur,  sometimes  half  of 


198  ORAPE  CULTURE   AND 

the  vine,  sometimes  it  takes  all,  while  in  another  season  it 
may  be  healthy  again,  ripen  its  fruit,  and  have  healthy  leaves. 
The  leaves  become  spotted,  like  if  drops  of  hot  water  had 
fallen  on  them,  becoming  livid  at  first,  they  soon  change  to 
almost  scarlet,  and  finally  drop;  the  fruit,  if  small,  shrivels 
up  and  dries;  if  larger,  it  becomes  marbled  with  dull  gray, 
and  does  not  attain  full  size.  I  think  some  injury  to  the 
vine,  either  by  injudicious  and  severe  pruning,  or  by  tearing 
the  roots  with  the  plow,  or  by  gophers  or  other  animals, 
mostly  the  cause  of  it.  The  bluestone  remedy  has  been 
recommended  against  it,  and  may  prove  effectual.  It  is  pre- 
pared as  follows:  Dissolve  in  25  gallons  of  water  16  Ibs.  of 
copper  sulphate  (bluestone),  also  shake  20  Ibs  of  quicklime 
with  seven  and  a  half  gallons  of  water  into  a  milk  of  lime, 
which  then  rinse  with  the  bluestone  solution;  this  will  pro- 
duce a  light  blue  mixture,  which  should  be  frequently  stirred 
during  use.  This  is  sprinkled  on  the  vines  by  means  of  a 
little  broom.  Care  should  be  taken  not  to  sprinkle  the 
grapes.  It  is  recommeded  by  Professor  Millardet  also  as  a 
remedy  against  peronospora,  and  Prof.  Hilgard  thinks  it  may 
be  a  remedy  against  mildew.  I  think  that  an  application  of 
this  solution,  applied  as  a  whitewash  to  the  body  of  the  vine  in 
the  winter,  would  be  very  beneficial  as  a  prevcntative  of 
diseases,  and  also  destroy  a  great  many  injurious  insects  and 
their  eggs. 

BLACK    KNOT. 

This  disease,  which  appears  sometimes  on  the  trunk  of  the 
vine;  sometimes  on  its  head  or  below  a  spur,  is  mostly  due  to 
external  injuries,  either  too  short  or  injudicious  pruning, 
bruises,  breaking  of  the  vine,  or  severe  frosts;  in  short,  by 
some  cause  which  effects  a  bursting  of  the  sap  vessels.  For 
instance,  if  all  the  young  growth  of  the  vine  is  so  badly  frosted 
that  even  the  wood  is  affected,  and  the  dormant  buds  killed, 
there  is  nothing  left  to  conduct  the  flow  of  sap,  and  stagnation 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  199 

ensues,  by  which  the  sap  vessels  below  are  extended  to  burst- 
ing, the  sap  vitiates,  and  in  oozing  out  through  the  bark, 
forms  these  abnormal  warty  excrescences.  Vines  grown  from 
cuttings  of  very  large,  porous  wood  are  also  more  subject  to  it 
than  those  from  medium,  firm,  short -jointed  wood.  I  have 
already  referred  to  injudicious  short  pruning,  reducing  a  vine 
of  say  300  buds,  to  eight  or  ten,  as  one,  and  the  most  preva- 
lent, cause  of  black  knot.  Judicious  pruning,  and  in  case  of 
very  destructive  frosts  in  Fall  or  Spring,  or  the  breaking  of  the 
vine  as  may  sometimes  happen,  grafting  may  prove  a  preven- 
tative,  as  the  scions  will  then  serve  as  conductors  and  eleva- 
tors of  the  superfluous  sap.  In  resorting  to  this  remedy  in 
large  vines,  it  will  be  well  to  take  them  low  down,  and  leave 
several  buds  to  the  scions. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

INSECTS    AND    ANIMALS    INJURIOUS    TO    THE    VINE. 

Our  most  formidable  insect  enemy,  the  phylloxera,  has  al- 
ready been  discussed  in  a  previous  chapter.  Other  insect 
enemies  are  not  'so  formidable,  though  sometimes  injurious 
enough.  Perhaps  the  worst  of  these  is  the  little  white  thrip, 
a  leaf  hopper,  a  little  midge  of  a  thing,  which  feeds  on  the 
under  side  of  the  leaves,  causing  them  to  dry  or  drop,  when 
the  fruit  can  not  fully  ripen,  and  therefore  will  not  develop  suf- 
ficient sugar.  Early  summer  pruning  is  one  of  the  aids  to  pre- 
vent exposure  to  the  sun,  as  the  young  laterals  will  retain  their 
leaves  much  longer.  But  sulphuring  with  bellows  will  also 
serve  as  a  partial  remedy,  and  kindling  small  fires  in  the 


200  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

vineyard  at  night,  or  one  person  taking  a  brightly  burning 
torch  and  walking  through  the  rows,  while  another  beats  the 
vines,  will  cause  the  insects  to  fly  into  the  flames  and  thus 
get  scorched. 

The  Grape  Vine  Fidia,  a  small  ashy  gray  beetle,  about  the 
size  of  a  common  house  fly,  sometimes  becomes  very  destruc- 
tive to  the  foliage.  Sulphuring,  and  when  they  become  too 
numerous,  hand-shaking  early  in  the  morning,  when  the  in- 
sect is  still  dormant,  into  a  screen  of  the  shape  of  an  inverted 
umbrella,  with  a  slit  or  space  on  one  side  to  enable  the  oper- 
ator to  push  it  under  the  vine,  are  about  the  most  common 
remedies. 

The  gray  cut  worm  and  the  wire  worm,  a  worm  about 
two  inches  long  with  a  hard  covering  of  brownish  yellow  color, 
sometimes  materially  injure  the  young  shoots.  The  wire 
worm  works  mostly  underground,  while  the  cut  worm  will  cut 
off  the  young  shoots  above  the  ground.  Handpicking  is 
about  the  only  remedy;  the  cut  worm  is  generally  found  un- 
der the  loose  clods  at  the  base  of  the  vine,  while  the  wire 
worm  is  found  mostly  on  the  suckers  below  and  the  young 
shoots  of  the  grafts  where  they  are  below  the  ground. 

There  is  also  a  black,  longish  beetle  which  will  bore  into 
the  buds  and  wood,  making  a  round  hole,  but  I  have  not 
found  it  very  numerous  or  very  destructive.  A  steel  blue 
beetle,  very  active,  is  also  destructive  to  the  young  shoots, 
and  sometimes  a  large  worm,  similar  to  the  common  tobacco 
worm,  will  feed  upon  the  foliage.  The  leaf  .folders  common 
in  the  East  I  have  not  yet  observed  here. 

The  Rocky  Mountain  locust,  or  grasshopper,  has  visited 
certain  sections  of  the  State,  and  is  very  destructive.  I  have 
seen  a  vineyard  of  one  hundred  acres  in  Knights  Valley  kept 
completely  bare  by  them  one  summer  ;  but  in  the  next  they 
had  entirely  disappeared.  It  is  very  difficult  to  guard  against 
them,  though  the  remedies  advised  by  Prof.  Riley  can  no 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  201 

doubt  be  of  some  use,  digging  ditches  and  then  crushing 
them,  etc.  There  visitations,  however,  are  very  few,  and 
seem  to  be  only  temporary,  as  the  rains  of  the  next  winter, 
together  with  their  insect  enemies,  have  destroyed  them. 

It  seems  also  that  they  destroy  all  other  insect  enemies  to 
the  vine,  or  starve  them  out,  as  seldom  any  of  them  are  seen 
the  next  summer. 

Bees  and  wasps  are  sometimes  quite  troublesome,  and  it  is 
certainly  not  advisable  to  grow  grapes  and  also  keep  bees. 
Traps  of  small  jars,  filled  with  a  solution  of  molasses,  into 
which  they  will  crawl  and  drown  themselves,  is  about  the 
best  remedy. 

The  punctured  Diabrotica,  a  small  beetle  of  the  size  of  a 
common  lady  bug,  also  preys  upon  the  berries,  eating  holes 
into  them.  So  tar  it  has  not  been  very  destructive.  Our 
common  lady  bug,  the  little  red  and  black  beetle,  is  accused 
by  some  of  feeding  on  the  bloom  and  the  young  berries,  but 
I  think  erroneously.  I  have  always  considered  it  one  of  the 
best  friends  of  the  vineyardist  and  orchardist,  as  they  destroy 
thousands  of  aphis  or  plant  lice,  ants  andthrips,  and  I  should 
be  very  sorry  to  see  my  little  friend  convicted  of  real  mischief.. 

Among  our  best  friends  we  may  also  count  the  common 
toads  and  lizards,  which  destroy  countless  insects,  and  should 
be  carefully  preserved  and  fostered,  not  tortured  and  killed,  as 
thoughtless  children  will  do  sometimes. 

I  believe  that  a  solution  of  London  purple,  about  one 
pound  to  fifty  gallons  of  water,  sprinkled  over  the  vines  before 
the  bloom,  will  destroy  most  of  the  insects  that  prey  on  the 
foliage.  I  trust  that  we  will  soon  have  conclusive  evidence  as 
to  its  merits. 

Rabbits  or  hares  are  sometimes  very  destructive,  biting  off 
the  young  vines  and  grafts.     Other  remedies,  such  as  blood, 
etc.,  smeared  on  the  vines,  have  done  but  little  good  so  far. 
When  they  are  numerous,  a  tight  picket  fence  is  the  best  safe- 


202  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

guard,  such  as  is  now  woven  by  machines  at  80  cents  per 
rod,  with  five  double  wires,  which  can  be  fastened  to  posts  by 
staples,  and  is  an  effectual  protection.  Otherwise  the  shot 
gun  and  grey  hounds  are  the  best  protectors. 

Ground  squirrels  and  skunks,  also  raccoons  and  foxes,  are 
all  very  fond  of  grapes.  The  best  remedy  against  the  first, 
and  which  also  generally  tells  on  the  others,  as  they  will  eat 
the  poisoned  squirrel,  is  Mc'Leods  squirrel  poison,  made  at 
Livermore,  Alameda  Co.  It  is  poisoned  wheat,  flavored  with 
Angelica,  the  smell  of  which  seems  to  draw  the  squirrels,  and 
is  instantaneous  death  to  them.  We  have  killed  hundreds  of 
them  by  a  single  application  of  four  or  five  grains,  thrown  into 
their  holes.  They  can  generally  be  found  the  next  morning 
in  front  of  their  holes,  and  should  be  looked  after  and  buried. 

The  pretty  little  California  quail,  although  no  doubt  very 
useful  during  the  summer  m  destroying  insects,  becomes  a 
great  nuisance  in  fall,  and  I  think  it  was  wise  in  the  super- 
visors of  Napa  County  to  change  the  season  of  their  protec- 
tion from  ist  of  October  to  i5th  of  August,  as  vineyardists 
can  now  use  the  gun  against  them  in  time  to  reduce  their 
depredations.  When  we  consider  that  they  live  entirely  of 
grapes  as  soon  as  they  ripen,  and  that  they  will  use  the  "grape 
cure"  at  the  rate  of  a  bunch  a  day  for  each,  we  can  easily 
imagine  what  an  expensive  luxury  they  may  become. 


WINK-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  203 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

FROSTS     AND     HAIL,      THEIR      EFFECTS,     PREVENTATIVES      AND 
REMEDIES. 

While  many  sections  of  the  State  are  free  from  frosts, 
others,  and  among  them  those  which  produce  our  choicest 
wines,  are  very  much  subject  to  them,  and  they  have  proved 
so  capricious  of  late  that  it  cannot  be  said  that  any  location 
in  those  sections  is  entirely  safe.  Locations  which  had  not 
suffered  from  them  for  ten  years  were  frosted  last  spring,  while 
others  which  were  frosted  badly  in  former  years,  escaped  un- 
hurt this  season.  I  speak  here  of  late  spring  frosts  and  early 
frosts  in  fall.  Our  winters  are  not  severe  enough  to  hurt  the 
vines,  unless  in  abnormal  seasons,  where  a  moist  fall  which 
started  the  vines  into  an  unnatural  growth  and  they  did  not 
mature  their  wood  fully,  was  followed  by  a  sudden  snap  of 
cold  weather.  This  is  so  seldom  the  case,  however,  that  it 
should  hardly  be  taken  into  consideration,  and  only  in  low 
moist  locations  not  fit  for  grape  culture;  which  should  be 
avoided  in  planting  anyway. 

But  while  we  cannot  say  that  any  locality  in  some  sections 
of  the  State  is  entirely  free  from  frost,  yet  there  is  a  great  dif- 
ference. Low,  narrow  valleys  and  springy  ground  are  pecu- 
liarly subject  to  it,  and  should  therefore  be  avoided  in  choos- 
ing a  location.  Very  often  a  few  feet  of  elevation  will  make 
a  great  difference,  and  the  vines  in  the  valley  may  be  all 
black  with  frost,  while  five  feet  above  it,  rising  towards  the 
hills,  not  a  leaf  may  be  touched.  Therefore  avoid  low,  moist 
locations;  these  will  do,  if  you  have  them  on  your  place,  for 
grain  and  hay,  vegetables,  etc.;  and  plant  your  vines  on  the 


204  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

warm  hillsides,  sloping  down  to  the  valley,  which  will  give 
you  a  choicer  product  than  the  rich  valleys  anyway,  though 
perhaps  not  quite  so  much  in  seasons  free  from  frost.  It  is 
discouraging  to  see  a  vineyard,  rich  in  promise  of  a.  bountiful 
crop,  cut  down  and  blackened  in  a  single  night,  although  the 
damage  is  seldom  so  great  as  it  appears  at  first  sight. 

Then  plant  your  lowest  blocks  with  such  varieties  as  will 
start  late  and  bear  well  even  from  the  lower  buds.  The  Mar- 
sanne,  Green  Hungarian,  Pedro  Ximenes  (generally  called 
Sauvignon  Vert,  Colombar  erroneously)  Palomino  (Golden 
Chasselas,  erroneously  of  Napa),  Clairette  Blanche  and  Mataro 
are  safest,  and  will  yield  a  good  crop  even  if  the  first  growth 
is  frosted,  under  a  treatment  I  shall  describe  later.  So  much 
in  regard  to  locating  and  planting  as  preventath'C  measures. 
Among  the  other  mechanical  preventatives  we  will  consider 

ist.  Late  Pruning.  This  is  advocated  and  practiced  by 
some,  who  argue  that  by  deferring  the  pruning  until  May,  when 
the  vine  has  already  grown  six  inches  or  more,  they  can  keep 
the  lower  buds  on  the  shoots  dormant,  as  the  upper  buds  start 
first,  and  if  they  wait  until  danger  from  frost  is  past  and  then 
prune,  they  will  have  a  crop  from  the  lower  buds.  This  is 
.no  doubt  true,  but  the  vine  must  also  necessarily  receive  a 
severe  shock,  and  be  enfeebled  thereby,  especially  as  they 
bleed  very  severely  if  pruned  at  that  time.  It  also  makes  the 
fruit  very  much  later,  there  is  danger  of  imperfect  ripening 
and  immature  growth  in  fall.  Moreover,  it  is  a  great  waste 
of  energy,  to  allow  the  vine  to  produce  so  many  shoots  and 
-then  prune  them  off.  For  all  these  reasons  I  do  not  think 
the  practice  should  prevail. 

2nd.  High  Training.  Some  grow  their  stool  pruning  va- 
rieties with  heads  four  and  even  five  feet  high,  claiming  that 
.they  suffer  less  thus  then  when  pruned  to  low  heads.  This  may 
be  sometimes  the  case,  but  in  seasons  like  the  last  we  have 
seen  that  in  the  same  piece  of  vineyard,  sometimes  the  upper 


WINE-MAKING    IN     CALIFORNIA.  205 

shoots  were  killed,  while  the  lower  escaped;  while  a  neighbor- 
ing vine  would  show  exactly  the  reverse;  many  had  their 
lower  and  upper  shoots  killed,  while  the  middle  ones  escaped; 
and  another  vine  close  by  was  not  hurt  at  all.  Therefore  in 
such  seasons  high  training  would  not  be  a  preventative,  al- 
though in  some  cases  it  may  prove  beneficial;  but  we  can 
hardly  expect  as  good  results  from  vines  thus  elevated,  nor 
quite  as  early. 

jd.  Smoking.  This  is  one  of  the  most  generally  adopted 
preventatives.  It  is  claimed  by  its  advocates  that  by  raising 
a  dense  smoke  early  in  the  morning,  about  three  to  four 
o'clock,  it  will  raise  a  cloud  or  covering  above  the  vineyard 
which  will  prevent  the  effects  of  frost,  if  any  comes,  and  more- 
over, prevent  the  direct  rays  of  the  sun  from  striking  the 
vines,  should  they  be  frosted ;  and  thus  allow  them  to  thaw- 
gradually.  This  is  a  plausible  theory,  and  may  hold  good  to 
a  certain  extent.  If  all  the  neighbors  join  and  make  so  dense 
a  smoke  that  it  will  serve  as  a  heavy  cloud  over  all  the  vine- 
yards, and  the  temperature  does  not  fall  too  low,  it  may  pre- 
vent or  ameliorate  damage.  But  they  seldom  work  in  unison, 
some  prefer  staying  in  bed  while  others  watch  and  smoke; 
besides,  I  think  smoke  is  only  a  preventative  when  the  ther- 
mometer falls  to  the  freezing  point  or  slightly  below  it;  but 
when  it  drops  as  low  as  28°,  or  even  26°,  as  has  been  the 
case,  even  the  most  systematical  smoking  will  not  save  the 
vines  from  damage.  But  if  all  these  preventatives  will  fail- 
sometimes,  what  shall  we  do  to  be  safe,  or,  at  least,  partially  so  ? 

I  have  given  this  subject  close  attention  and  thought,  and  I 
think  my  experience  of  last  spring  has  proven  that. I  have 
found  a  method  to  obtain  fair  crops,  even  in  the  most  frosty 
season.  My  method  and  partial  preventative  is  "  longer 
pruning." 

Instead  of  the  commonly  followed  practice  of  pruning  all 
spurs  to  two  buds,  I  leave  four,  other  Arise  pruning  as  before  ; 


206  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

leaving  just  as  many  spurs  or  canes  as  usual,  but  also  leaving 
the  canes  somewhat  longer  than  usual.  Now  for  the  result. 
As  part  of  my  vineyard  is  in  the  valley  and  on  very  rich 
soil,  where  the  vines  make  a  very  vigorous  growth,  I  pruned 
them  last  winter  as  indicated  above,  fearing  there  might  be 
trouble  from  frost.  Last  spring  (1887)  was  a  very  frosty  one, 
and  my  vineyard  was  visited  by  Jack  Frost  two  distinct 
times,  once  the  latter  part  of  April,  the  last  and  most  destruc- 
tive one  being  May  12  and  13.  On  some  of  my  vines,  which 
had  started  vigorously,  with  shoots  already  18  inches  long 
from  the  upper  buds,  not  a  green  leaf  was  left  to  tell  the  tale; 
while  others  had  the  tops  of  the  shoots  badly  blackened,  and 
some  escaped  with  little  or  no  injury.  The  vines  presented 
a  truly  sickening  and  discouraging  aspect,  and  my  two  sons 
gave  up  to  one-fourth  of  a  crop.  As  soon  as  we  could  ascer- 
tain the  lull  extent  of  the  damage,  we  armed  ourselves  each' 
with  a  small  pair  of  shears  we  use  for  picking  grapes,  and  cut 
all  the  blackened  shoots  off  clean;  while  those  which  had 
only  the  tips  slightly  singed,  were  cut  back  only  as  far  as 
damaged.  It  cost  three  of  us  a  full  week's  work  to  go  over  20 
acres  of  bearing  vines,  and  when  the  job  was  done,  about  5 
acres  presented  a  perfectly  barren  appearance,  with  only  here 
and  there  a  green  shoot  or  a  few  leaves  left.  My  readers  will 
please  bear  in  mind  that  all  the  frozen  shoots  had  started 
from  the  upper  buds  on  the  spurs  as  well  as  on  the  canes  in 
long  pruned  varieties.  The  varieties  were  Zinfandel,  Chauche 
Gris,  Chauche  Noir,  Franken  Riesling,  Pedro  Ximenes, 
(Sauvignon  Vert  as  known  in  this  State),  some  Madeline 
Angevine,  Orleans  Riesling,  Mataro.  Of  these  the  Pedro 
Ximenes  and  Mataro  were  only  partly  damaged,  while  the 
others  fared  about  alike.  The  vines  remained  in  this  almost 
dormant  condition  for  about  a  week,  when  the  lower  buds, 
dormant  so  far  on  the  spurs  as  well  as  the  canes,  commenced 
to  grow,  and  in  about  a  week  more  they  were  all  out  in  leaf, 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  207 

showing  abundance  of  fruit  forms,  except  those  shoots  which 
we  thought  had  been  injured  but  slightly.  These  attempted 
to  bloom,  but  as  we  had  a  few  days  of  hot  north  wind  just  at 
that  time,  they  dropped  nearly  all  their  bloom.  At  the 
present  writing  (August  15),  the  vines  that  were  entirely 
frosted  show  a  nice  crop  of  about  3  tons  to  the  acre,  of  finely 
set  and  developed  bunches  and  berries,  while  those  only  par- 
tially frosted  are  not  near  so  good,  with  the  exception  of  the 
Pedro  Ximenes  and  Mataro,  which  show  a  good  crop  from 
first  growth.  The  vines  have  made  an  enormous  growth, 
were  pinched  when  the  young  shoots  were  18  inches  long, 
and  are  now  interlaced  with  each  other,  so  that  it  is  difficult 
to  get  through  between. 

The  conclusions  to  be  drawn  from  this  are  very  simple. 
When  there  is  any  danger  from  frost,  we  should  prune  to 
double  the  amount  of  buds,  to  be  safe.  If  no  frost  comes, 
we  can  easily  rub  out  all  weak  and  superfluous  shoots,  reduc- 
ing them  to  one  half  the  number.  This  will  give  them  all 
more  room  and  air,  and  it  is  certainly  easier  to  rub  off  a  super- 
fluous shoot,  than  to  add  to  those  which  nature  has  alotted. 
Pruning  is  rather  a  perversion  of  nature  any  way;  and  when 
we  overstep  the  bounds  of  reason,  when  we  infringe  her  laws 
by  mutilating,  instead  of  only  reducing  to  such  limits  as  will 
give  us  the  most  perfect  fruit,  outraged  nature  will  rebel  and 
punish  us  in  time. 

Mr.  John  H.  Wheeler,  our  present  chief  viticultural  officer, 
has  experimented  in  the  same  direction,  and  as  he  tells  me, 
with  favorable  results  similar  to  mine.  The  difference  in  his 
treatment  from  mine  only  consists  in  his  leaving  still  longer 
canes,  and  not  so  many  spurs. 

After  this  season's  experience,  perhaps  one  of  the  worst  we 
have  had,  in  its  sudden  changes  from  low  temperature  to 
scorching  north  winds,  I  have  little  fears  of  raising  a  satisfac- 
tory crop  every  season,  even  after  destructive  frosts.  Still,  I 

14 


208  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

shall  extend  my  vineyards  to  the  hillsides  and  more  elevated 
slopes,  of  which  I  have  an  abundance,  and  would  advise 
every  one  to  do  the  same.  I  would  not  have  planted  in  the 
valley,  but  my  predecessor  thought  himself  safe,  as  there  had 
not  been  any  frosts  there  within  the  memory  of  that  famous 
personage,  the  "  oldest  inhabitant." 

Sometimes,  but  very  rarely,  we  are  visited  by  destructive 
hailstorms  in  early  spring,  which  are  similar  in  their  effects  to 
frost.  I  would  advise  the  same  treatment  in  that  case,  cut- 
ting back  the  injured  shoots,  and  trusting  to  the  dormant 
buds  for  the  crop. 

Yet  another  point  in  this  connection  ought  to  be  mentioned 
•here.  It  is  often  the  case  that  we  have  extremely  hot  weather 
at  the  beginning  of  the  vintage,  when  fermentation  sets  in 
with  great  violence,  but  stops  at  a  certain  point,  which  I  shall 
more  fully  explain  when  I  come  to  wine  making.  Between 
the  1 5th  of  September  and  the  ist  of  October,  we  generally 
have  a  few  showers  which  refresh  the  vines  and  the  grapes; 
after  which  there  seldom  is  any  trouble,  but  fermentation 
goes  on  normally  and  well.  This  later  crop,  delayed  about 
three  weeks,  will  be  apt  to  escape  this  trying  period,  ripening 
after  it,  but  still  with  abundance  of  sugar  to  make  a  first  class 
wine,  and  I  think  will  have  more  bouquet  and  sprightliness 
than  the  first  would  have  had.  It  is  not  what  is  termed 
"  second  crop  "  which  comes  on  the  laterals  of  the  fruit  bear- 
ing shoots,  but  ''first  crop"  from  the  main  shoots,  only  de- 
layed a  few  weeks.  I  hope  to  report  to  my  readers,  before 
this  volumes  reaches  them,  how  far  these  conjectures  have 
been  verified  by  the  facts. 

Some  varieties  are  also  much  hardier  than  others,  and 
among  these  I  will  name  the  Pedro  Ximenes  (erroneously 
Sauvignon  Vert,  Colombar)  Mataro,  Marsanne,  Green.  Hun- 
garian, Clairette  Blanche.  All  of  these  start  late  in  spring, 
and  are  therefore  not  apt  to  suffer  so  much. 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  209 

Since  the  above  was  written  we  have  approached  the 
vintage,  a  full  month  having  elapsed,  and  I  can  report  now, 
September  i6th,  a  larger  and  better  crop  than  even  predicted 
then.  The  totally  frosted  vines  will  make  four  to  five  tons 
to  the  acre,  of  fine  compact  bunches,  which  will  all  be  fully 
ripe  by  ist  of  October,  and  which  certainly  will  make  a 
first-class  wine.  So  fully  am  I  convinced  of  having  found 
the  best  remedy  and  preventative  against  frost,  that  I  shall 
not  attempt  to  smoke,  but  trust  entirely  to  long  pruning;  and 
feel  certain  of  .a  crop. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

THE    VINTAGE — GATHERING  THE  GRAPES  FOR  WINE.. 

For  this,  the  grapes  should  be  thoroughly  ripe,  yet  not  too 
ripe.  There  is  a  period  in  the  maturity  of  every  fruit,  when 
it  is  at  perfection;  as  soon  as  this  period  is  passed,  it  ap- 
proaches decay,  loses  sprightliness,  and  while  it  may  develop 
more  sugar,  and,  as  is  the  case  in  the  grape,  turn  into  raisins, 
its  wine  will  lose  in  freshness  and  bouquet,  and  gain  only  a 
larger  percentage  of  alcohol.  If,  on  the  contrary,  the  grapes 
are  picked  too  green,  the  wine  will  always  have  a  greenish, 
unripe  taste,  and  be  harsh  and  sour,  owing  to  the  surplus  of 
tartaric  acid  and  malic  acid. 

General  indications  of  ripeness  in  the  fruit.  The  stem  of 
the  bunch  changes  from  green  to  brown,  between  the  shoot 
and  the  small  knob  on  the  stem  above  the  bunch,  and  the 
bunch  becomes  pendant.  The  berry  becomes  translucent 
and  soft,  its  skin  thin,  and  they  separate  easily  from  the  stem. 


210  GRAPE   CULTURE   AND 

The  juice  acquires  an  agreeable  sweetness  and  flavor,  and  be- 
comes thick  and  glutinous.  The  seeds  separate  easily  from 
the  flesh. 

These  will  serve  as  general  indications,  but  the  surest  test 
is  the  sacharometer  or  must  scale,  of  which  there  are  many 
kinds  ;  but  as  Balling's  is  the  one  commonly  used  in  this 
State,  and  is  about  the  simplest  and  best,  we  will  take  it  as 
our  guide.  They  are  all  constructed  on  the  same  principle,, 
that  of  the  density  of  a  fluid,  for  instance  water,  being  increased^ 
by  adding  sugar;  and  therefore  the  sweeter  the  must,  the  less 
will  the  instrument  sink  in  it,  or  rather,  the  more  will  the 
sugar  uphold  it.  If  an  average  sample  of  grapes  is  taken 
from  the  vineyard",  the  juice  expressed  and  strained,  and 
at  the  right  temperature,  which  should  be  from  62  to  65° 
Farenheit,  the  instrument  will  test  it  with  certainty,  and  is 
surer  than  all  other  indications.  Figures  23  and  24  will  show 
Balling's  Sacharometer  and  the  testing 
jar,  which  can  be  of  glass  or  tin,  with 
a  wider  foot  or  rim  to  stand  upright. 
If  none  of  these  are  at  hand,  any  jar 
or  glass  that  has  the  necessary  depth 
for  the  sacharometer  to  sink,  will  an- 
swer. Fill  the  jar  full  enough  so  that 
when  the  instrument  sinks  in  it,  the 
fluid  will  be  close  to  the  rim,  then 
wipe  your  instrument  carefully,  hold- 
ing it  by  the  stem,  and  let  it  sink 
gradually  until  it  floats.  Then  press 

lightly  with  the  finger,  so  that  it  will 
FIG.  23.  FIG.  24. 

come  to  an  equilibrium,  but  be  careful  that  there  is  no  fluid 
on  the  top  above,  as  that  would  influence  its  accuracy. 
The  surface  of  the  liquid,  when  the  instrument  has  become 
stationary,  will  indicate  the  sugar  contained  in  the  must, 


WINE-MAKING    IN   CALIFORNIA.  211 

where  it  touches  the  number  on  the  stem  of  the  instrument. 

The  must  should  not  be  less  than  twenty-two  or  higher 
than  twenty-five,  to  make  a  good,  light  white  table  wine  or 
claret.  But  there  is  a  certain  difference  in  varieties,  which 
should  be  borne  in  mind.  Some  varieties  ripen  irregularly, 
and  have  quite  a  number  of  overripe  berries;  while  others 
are  hardly  ripe  enough.  The  Zinfandel  is  one  of  these,  and 
as  these  shriveled  berries  contain  hardly  any  juice,  but  rather 
dried  sugar  or  caramel,  the  sacharometer  shows  less  sugar  in 
these  than  they  really  contain.  The  Zinfandel  should  be  very 
ripe,  to  make  as  full  flavored  and  smooth  a  wine  as  it  will,  if 
properly  handled.  In  testing  such  grapes,  always  count  from 
iu  to  2°  more.,  than  the  instrument  shows.  If  such  Zinfandel 
must  show  23°  count  it  25,  and  your  grapes  are  ripe  enough. 
If  it  does  not  show  this,  wait  with  the  vintage  until  it  does, 
except  in  abnormal  seasons,  when  they  will  hardly  come  up 
to  it,  and  yet  may  commence  to  rot,  which  is  a  sure  sign  that 
they  should  be  picked.  In  Burger  again,  and  a  few  others, 
you  can  hardly  expect  more  than  20  to  22°,  even  when  very 
ripe,  and  it  would  be  unwise  to  wait  longer.  The  remedy  in 
these  cases  will  be  to  blend  with  a  heavier  wine,  although  20° 
being  equal  to  about  10  per  cent,  alcohol  in  the  fermented 
wine,  is  really  heavy  enough  for  an  ordinary  light  wine. 

In  this  connection,  let  me  impress  upon  my  readers  the 
importance  of  a  succession  of  varieties,  from  early  to  late,  so 
that  they  will  not  be  crowded  by  one  variety  which  ripens  at 
the  same  time,  and  of  which  they  would  be  forced  to  pick 
some  hardly  ripe  enough  at  first,  while  the  last  would  be  over 
ripe.  Have  a  succession  of,  say  six  varieties  in  about  equal 
quantity,  so  that  you  can  take  a  week  for  each,  and  do  it 
justice.  There  is  one  great  trouble,  with  which  large  winer- 
ies, who  purchase  grapes  in  addition  to  their  own  product, 
have  to  contend  with;  they  cannot  control  the  ripeness  of  the 
grapes,  nor  the  supply  each  day,  as  well  as  the  individual, 


212 


GRAPE   CULTURE  AND 


who  works  up  only  his  own  product;  they  are  often  rushed 
by  their  supplies  beyond  their  capacity,  and  the  consequence 
is  a  great  deal  of  hasty  and  imperfect  work,  resulting  in 
faulty  wines. 

IMPLEMENTS     FOR     PICKING. 

Knives  are  generally  used,  but  I  find  a  small  scissor  or 
shear,  imported  by  Justinian  Caire,  and  manufactured  at 
Geneva,  much  handier.  Fig.  25  shows  the  implement  about 
two-third's  natural  size.  They  are  very 
convenient,  cut  easily,  can  be  held  in  the 
hand  without  strain,  a  plated  spring  opens 
them  wide  enough  for  cutting,  and  they 
do  not  shake  the  bunch  and  vine  as  a 
knife  will,  thereby  preventing  dropping  of 
berries  and  wastage.  Their  price  is  about 
$7  per  dozen,  or  75  cts.  retail.  Large 
pruning  shears  can  also  be  used,  but  are 
not  near  so  handy. 

For  receptacles  of  the  grapes  we  gen- 
erally use  wooden  boxes  here,  holding 
from  40  to  60  pounds  each,  with  oblong 
holes  in  the  ends,  so  that  the  workman 
can  carry  them  before  him.  They  are 
mostly  bought  in  shocks,  nailed  together 
at  home,  and  bound  at  the  ends  with  a 
strip  of  rawhide  or  wire,  to  keep  them 
more  solid.  Care  should  be  taken  that 
the  bottoms  are  of  one  piece,  as  it  pre- 
vents breakage  and  waste  through  the 
cracks.  They  are,  when  filled,  carried 
to  the  avenues,  from  where  the  wagon 
takes  them  to  the  winery  direct.  When 
grapes,  especially  the  tender  skinned 
varieties,  must  be  hauled  a  long  distance 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  213 

over  rough  roads,  it  will  be  found  advantageous  to  have  two 
oblong  vats,  four  feet  high,  made  of  good  redwood,  and  to 
fit  on  an  ordinary  wagon,  into  which  the  boxes  can  be  emptied. 
This  will  prevent  leakage,  and  the  juice  which  runs  out  and 
is  wasted,  is  generally  the  best  ;  the  grapes  can  be  pitched 
with  forks  on  to  the  elevator  at  the  winery,  and  thus  save  it 
all. 

The  number  of  pickers  to  be  engaged,  depends  altogether 
on  the  quantity  to  be  worked  up  each  day.  A  man  can  pick 
and  carry  from  25  to  50  boxes,  say  at  an  average,  a  ton  a 
day,  which  will  vary  with  the  varieties  of  grapes,  whether 
large  or  small  bunches,  etc.  What  is  picked  in  one  day, 
should  fill  at  least  one  vat  or  cask  when  pressed,  and  be 
crushed  the  same  evening  or  day.  The  grapes  should  also  not 
be  too  warm;  if  the  temperature  rises  to  95  or  100  as  it  some- 
times does  for  a  few  days,  they  should  be  allowed  to  cool  dur- 
ing the  night,  if  necessary  ;  and  worked  up  in  the  morning. 
Of  this  I  shall  treat  more  fully  in  "  Making  the  Wine." 

It  will  become  necessary  sometimes,  when  the  grapes  do- 
not  ripen  evenly,  from  the  influence  of  frosts  or  other  causes, 
to  pick  several  times,  taking  only  the  bunches  that  are  fully 
ripe.  Pickers  should  be  closely  instructed  and  watched  in 
this  respect,  so  that  only  evenly  ripened  grapes,  which 
alone  can  make  a  good  wine,  are  taken.  They  should  also 
be  instructed  to  pick  out  all  decayed  or  rotten  berries,  as  well 
as  those  affected  by  mildew  and  Red  Leaf.  All  of  these  are 
apt  to  introduce  the  germs  of  disease  into  the  wine.  Sound, 
finely  flavored  wine  can  only  be  made  from  perfectly  sound 
grapes,  -well  ripened;  and  any  negligence  of  this  kind  will 
retaliate  on  the  wine  maker. 

It  will  sometimes  be  found  desirable  to  blend  several 
varieties,  and  when  they  ripen  at  the  same  time  it  is  best  to 
blend  by  gathering  at  same  time  and  mixing  in  the  fermenting 
vat.  For  instance,  the  Chasselas  Fontainebleau  (Gutedel) 


214  GRAPE  CULTUKE    AND 

and  Victoria  Chasselas  will  blend  well  together,  as  the  Vic- 
toria takes  away  the  softness  of  the  Gutedel,  and  gives  it  more 
character.  For  this  purpose,  and  to  find  the  best  blends,  the 
winemaker  should  experiment,  and  he  will  soon  find  how  to 
blend,  and  in  what  proportions.  No  rules  can  be  given  that 
will  apply  everywhere  and  in  every  season,  as  the  product 
will  change  with  location  and  season. 

It  is  also  necessary  to  consider  what  class  of  wines  are  to  be 
made  from  the  grapes.  If  light,  dry  wines,  with  fine  bouquet 
and  sprightliness  are  desired,  the  grapes  as  before  remarked, 
should  be  ripe,  but  not  over  ripe.  If  very  full  bodied, 
smooth  wines  are  the  object,  let  them  get  fully  ripe.  If  for 
sweet  wines,  let  them  remain  as  long  as  they  can  hang,  with- 
out decaying. 

Boxes  and  all  other  utensils  should  of  course  be  perfectly 
clean  and  sweet,  so  that  there  is  no  danger  of  acquiring  a 
mouldy  or  impure  taste. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

PICKING  THE  GRAPES  FOR  TABLE  AND  MARKET.   THE  GRAPE 

CURE. 

The  information  I  can  give  on  this  important  branch  of 
grape  growing  is  very  limited,  as  my  attention  has  been  de- 
voted almost  entirely  to  wine  making.  I  must,  therefor,  re- 
fer my  readers  mostly  to  other  sources  for  details  of  the  busi- 
ness, packing,  etc.  The  most  common  package  now  in  use 
is  the  square  basket  holding  about  six  pounds.  The  grapes 
are  picked  the  day  before,  so  that  the  stems  wilt  slightly, 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  215 

which  makes  them  pack  more  solid  and  convenient.  The 
bunches  are  then  carefully  assorted,  all  imperfect  or  decayed 
berries  clipped  out  with  a  small  scissors,  the  bunches  divided 
if  necessary,  to  pack  more  conveniently  and  snugly,  and  then 
shipped  across  the  continent.  This  season's  shipments  to 
New  York  and  other  Eastern  markets  seem  to  have  been  very 
successful  in  the  main,  and  realized  good  prices.  The  first 
and  earliest  come  from  Vacaville  and  Pleasant  Valley,  while 
the  great  bulk  seems  to  come  from  Sacramento  Valley,  and 
the  latest  from  the  Santa  Cruz  Mountains,  where  they  remained 
.fresh  and  green  on  the  vines  until  January  last  year.  The 
following  is  an  extract  from  a  letter  of  Mr.  William  B.  West, 
of  Stockton,  and  contains  some  interesting  data: 

"As  to  the  raisin  interest,  I  am  not  up  to  the  times.  I  have  found 
long  ago  that  the  Muscatel  cannot  be  raised  here,  and  I  gave  it  up.  In 
the  shipment  of  table  grapes  we  find  that  many  good  varieties,  which 
were  formerly  considered  too  tender  to  bear  shipment  to  the  East,  with 
improved  cars  and  manner  of  packing,  arrive  in  good  condition.  The 
soil  and  climate  of  the  vicinity  of  Stockton  has  proved  to  be  unusually 
good  to  produce  a  hardy  grape  that  will  ship  well,  and  in  the  future 
this  will  probably  be  our  chief  production.  Our  grapes  are  not  early  ; 
but  when  they  are  ripe  they  are  a  formidable  competitor  in  the  market. 
The  first  good  grape  that  we  have,  which  ripens  about  the  middle  of 
August  and  continues  a  month,  is  the  Black  Prince,  or  Eose  of  Peru  ; 
it  is  a  very,  firm,  sweet  grape  ;  many  tons  are  shipped  to  Utah,  Mon- 
tana, and  Texas,  from  Stockton.  Next  is  the  flame  colored  Tokay, 
which  colors  well  here,  and  is  a  very  superior  grape  for  long  journeys 
as  the  season  advances.  We  also  ship  the  Mission,  which  is  very  dif- 
ferent here  from  those  grown  at  Napa,  being  much  larger  and  sweeter. 
We  shipped  several  loar's  of  them  last  season,  with  good  profits,  but 
they  were  very  fine. 

"Still  later,  we  have  the  Black  Ferrara,  a  fine  large  grape  with  a 
deep  blue  bloom,  a  very  abundant  bearer,  usually  ten  to  twelve  tons  per 
acre,  and  an  excellent  keeper.  It  ripens  from  the  5th  of  October  to  No- 
vember. The  Emperor  is  also  a  great  favorite  in  the  East ;  it  is  a  deep 
ruby  red,  keeps  well,  but  is  not  so  regular  and  good  a  bearer  as  the 
Ferrara. 

"  These  are  our  most  reliable  shipping  varieties;  of  course  we  use  the 


21()  (iRAPK  CULTURE   AND 

early  varieties,  such  as  the  Sweetwater  and  Chasselas  Musqui,  but  as 
even  our  earliest  kinds  are  more  backward  than  those  of  Vacaville,  they 
are  not  so  profitable  as  later  and  finer  kinds. 

"  I  have  fruited  the  Loja,  or  grape  of  Almeria,  the  variety  sold  in 
the  East  from  Spain.  I  find,  however,  that  it  requires  a  more  moist 
and  sandy  soil  than  mine;  it  does  better  upon  a  river-bank  vineyard 
about  ten  miles  from  Stockton.  Mine  have  good  keeping  qualities,  but 
are  not  very  large  or  prolific.  I  think  this  variety  should  be  grown  in 
a  warm  locality,  where  the  roots  could  have  an  unlimited  supply  of  wa- 
ter, as  it  has  at  Almeria,  Spain.  There  are  several  Spanish  varieties 
which  do  well,  but  they  are  white,  and  not  much  sought  after  here  or 
in  the  interior. 

"I  did  not  mention  the  Muscat  of  Alexandria,  as  it  is  not  grown  suc- 
cessfully in  our  strong  soil.  Some  day  the  Spanish  kinds  will  be  grown 
for  shipment  to  the  East ;  but  we  must  find  a  very  warm  locality. 
Stockton,  notwithstanding  the  generally  prevailing  impression,  is  not 
warm  ;  our  springs  are  cool." 

The  Natoma  vineyards  at  Folsom  have  been  very  success- 
ful in  shipping  grapes  from  their  locality,  and  always  realized 
the  highest  prices.  Valuable  information  will  be  found  in  the 
.chapter  "Individual  enterprise  "  under  the  head  of  Natoma 
vineyards.  Sonoma  county  has  always  been  successful  in 
producing  fine  Tokay  grapes,  and  as  the  prices  for  good  ship- 
ping grapes  vary  from  $40  to  $65  per  ton,  delivered  to  the 
packer,  this  has  been  more  profitable  than  wine  grapes.  But 
in  this,  California  has  entered  an  entirely  new  and  untrodden 
field,  has  had  to  learn  solely  by  its  own  experience,  and  is 
only  now  beginning  to  see  its  way  to  a  very  successful  trade. 
It  will  be  some  time  before  we  are  fully  posted  as  to  best 
varieties  and  localities  adapted  to  them,  methods  of  lengthen- 
ing out  the  season,  etc.  One  very  important  step  is  the  es- 
tablishment of  four  cold  storage  rooms,  of  a  capacity  each  of 
30x35  feet,  in  one  of  the  wings  of  the  old  sugar  refinery  at  San 
Francisco,  now  occupied  by  the  Wine^Storage  and  Security 
Co.,  San  Francisco.  It  is  the  intention  of  the  Company  to 
keep  grapes  and  other  perishable  fruits  here  ah1  winter,  and  I 
hope  they  will  meet  with  all  the  success  their  enterprise  de- 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  217 

serves.  They  seem  to  spare  no  pains  to  meet  all  the  require- 
ments of  complete  cold  storage.  No  doubt  fresh  grapes,  well 
kept,  would  bring  a  good  price  in  February  and  March. 

For  home  market,  they  are  generally  packed  in  2oR)  boxes  ; 
and  all  methods  of  packing  require,  as  a  matter  of  course 
great  nicety  and  care  in  handling  the  fruit.  So  far,  it  has 
been  done  mostly  by  Chinese  help,  but  I  do  not  see  why  fe- 
male help  could  not  be  used  as  well,  as  has  already  been  done 
so  largely  in  canneries,  and  with  such  entire  success.  Surely 
this  is  work  to  which  their  nimble  fingers,  and  taste  for  the 
beautiful  should  eminently  fit  them.  A  great  many  grapes 
are  also  canned  every  season,  in  the  common  quart  cans.  For 
this  purpose,  the  Muscat  of  Alexandria  is  used  in  preference, 
on  account  of  its  color  and  fine  muscat  flavor,  the  largest  and 
most  perfect  berries  only  being  used  for  the  purpose  ;  while 
the  smaller  berries  can  be  utilized  Tor  grape  jelly. 

But  one  very  important  method  of  utilizing  the  grapes  seems 
to  have  been  strangely  overlooked  and  neglected  so  far  ;  the 
grape  cure,  so  largely  followed  and  universally  recommended 
by  the  leading  physicians  of  Europe.  Yet  it  would  seem  to 
be  more  needed  on  this  dyspeptic  continent  than  anywhere 
else.  Thousands  upon  thousands  flock  annually  to  the 
vineyards  of  the  Rhine,  the  Moselle  and  the  Danube  ;  they 
commence  with  eating  half  a  pound  of  grapes  per  day,  which, 
before  a  month  is  over,  is  generally  increased  to  four  and  five 
pounds  daily,  and  is  considered  the  universal  remedy  for 
impaired  digestion  and  diseases  of  the  bowels  and  kidneys.  Is 
it  not  strange,  that  here,  where  so  many  suffer  from  these  dis- 
eases, and  the  remedy  is  at  their  door,  so  to  say,  it  is  used  so 
little,  and  seldom  recommended  by  our  physicians?  Let  me 
suggest  to  the  landlords  of  our  numerous  summer  resorts  the 
propriety,  nay  the  necessity,  of  having  at  least  a  few  acres  of 
vineyard  connected  with  their  establishments,  where  there 
guests  can  have  fresh  grapes  at  any  time  during  the  autumn 


218  GRAPE   CULTURE   AND 

months  ;  fresh  and  cool  every  morning,  with  the  dews  of  the 
night  still  sparkling  on  them.  I  venture  to  predict  that  their 
mineral  waters  would  enjoy  a  greater  notoriety  and  celebrity 
than  they  ever  did  before,  and  their  visitors  be  sure  to  return 
the  next  season.  It  would  add  so  much  to  their  attractions 
that  they  could  not  stay  away.  The  grape  is  considered  the 
most  healthy  fruit  on  the  Globe,  and  it  is  strange  that  here, 
where  it  comes  to  the  greatest  perfection,  it  is  utilized  so  little 
for  sanitary  purposes.  As  long  as  the  American  nation  sub- 
sists on  warm  biscuits  and  pies,  washed  down  with  tea  and 
coffee,  intermixed  with  bad  whiskey  and  brandy,  so  long  will 
it  continue  to  be,  and  become  more  so  every  year,  a  nation 
of  dyspeptics.  When,  in  the  place  of  these,  good  healthy 
bread  and  fresh  fruit  of  every  kind  becomes  the  daily  food, 
and  good,  sound,  light  wine  the  daily  drink,  we  can  hope  for 
a  change  for  the  better,  "if  these  few  lines  can  give  an  im- 
petus, and  induce  but  a  small  number  to  try  it,  they  have  not 
been  written  in  vain,  for  I  know  that  it  need  but  be  tried  to 
be  appreciated  and  followed. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

THE    VINTAGE — RAISIN    MAKING. 

This  is  a  very  important  branch  of  the  industry,  next  in  im- 
portance to  the  wine  interest.  How  important  it  is,  what 
large  proportions  it  has  already  assumed,  and  how  bright  the 
outlook  for  its  future,  can  best  be  seen  from  the  circular  of 
Messrs.  Geo.  W.  Meade  &  Co.,  one  of  the  largest  commis- 
sion firms  in  that  trade,  and  also  the  heaviest  packers  of  Cal- 


\J  ^  JL   T    JU  J.V  k-7  A  •*• 

\VI N E-M A K I N G  I N  C A LIFORN lA 

ifornia  raisins,   from  which  I  take  the  liberty  to  quote  that 
part  relating  to  raisins.     They  say  : 

"We  estimate  the  total  product  of  1886  at  703,000  boxes  of  20  Ibs 
each,  and  apportioned  as  follows: 

Fresno  district,  boxes 225,000 

Tulare  district,  boxes 8,000 

Riverside  district,  boxes 185,000 

Orange  and  Santa  Ana  district,  boxes 160,000 

San  Diego  district,  boxes 25,000 

San  Bernardino  Co.,  outside  of  Riverside,  boxes 10,000 

Yolo  and  Solano 75,000 

Scattering,  Yuba,  Bntte,  Sacramento,  etc 15,000 


Total,  boxes 703,000 

"  It  is  with  a  great  deal  of  satisfaction  that  we  approach  the 
subject  of  California  raisins  for  the  year  1886.  For  many 
seasons  past  it  has  simply  been  up-hill  work  to  introduce  our 
raisins  and  to  convince  the  trade  generally  that  California 
could  produce  a  fruit  equal  to  the  Malaya.  While  the  fail- 
ure to  do  this  in  a  measure  was  perhaps  due  to  the  fact  that 
many  of  the  packing  of  California  raisins  were  of  poor  quality, 
it  is  nevertheless  also  true,  that  a  prejudice  existed  in  the 
minds  of  the  Eastern  jobbers  to  that  extent  that  they  persist- 
entiy  set  their  faces  against  a  California  raisin.  Notwith- 
standing these  discouragements  California  has  kept  steadily  at 
work  improving  the  quality  as  well  as  the  style  'of  packing, 
year  by  year,  until  the  outturn  of  1886,  on  many  brands,  at 
least,  equals  if  it  does  not  exceed  in  quality  the  very  best 
Spanish  fruit. 

"Next  year  we  anticipate  that  further  improvements,  both 
in  packing  and  labeling,  will  be  made,  so  that  nothing  will  be 
left  that  can  be  desired  on  that  score. 

"  The  labor  in  Spain  for  raisin  packing  is  very  cheap,  run- 
ning from  15  to  30  cents  per  day,  while  in  California  the 
same  work  is  paid  with  from  $1.00  to  $1.25  per  day.  To 


220  GRAPE   CULTURE    AND 

counteract  this  great  discrepancy,  therefore,  it  has  become 
incumbent  upon  the  ingenuity  of  Californians  to  devise  and 
•create  machinery  which  would  not  only  quicken  the  packing 
of  raisins,  but  would  at  the  same  time  reduce  the  cost.  The 
result  of  this  is  that  in  California  machinery  is  about  to  be 
used  and  run  by  steam  power,  for  the  steming,  grading,  fac- 
ing, and  packing  in  the  boxes  of  the  fruit  as  it  is  received 
from  the  grader.  Machinery  of  this  kind  is  almost  human  in 
its  action,  but  is  calculated  to  expedite  and  cheapen  packing, 
and  in  a  short  time  the  cheap  labor  of  Spain  will  be  entirely 
counteracted  by  the  ingenuity  of  the  California  Yankee. 

"All  over  the  State  this  year  there  has  been  a  great  im- 
provement in  packing,  and  many  of  the  brands  produced 
here  rank  equal  or  superior  to  the  best  Malaga  fruit.  A 
proof  of  this  fact  is  that  such  markets  as  New  York,  Boston, 
Philadelphia  and  other  large  Eastern  cities  have  taken  the 
finest  brands  of  our  raisins  at  prices  equal  to,  if  not  superior 
to,  the  Spanish  goods.  Different  sections  of  the  State  natur- 
ally claim  the  best  raisins,  but  very  much  depends  on  the 
care  taken  in  packing,  sweating  and  properly  preparing  them 
for  market.  %  Nearly  all  the  various  raisin  sections  of  Califor- 
nia can  and  do  produce  excellent  raisins,  and  there  are  many 
as  yet  undeveloped  sections  which  can  produce  raisins  equal 
to  any  yet  turned  out.  As  a  general  proposition,  it  will  pay 
all  producers  to  sell  their  fruit  in  the  sweat  boxes  to  some  reg- 
ular and  reliable  packer,  who  will  maintain  standard  grades 
from  their  section  of  the  country.  The  policy  now  in  use  to 
some  extent,  of  small  producers  packing  on  their  own  account, 
only  produces  irregular  and  uneven  grades,  and  is  not  calcu- 
lated to  lead  to  any  permanent  benefit  of  the  industry.  We 
can  repeat  our  suggestions  of  last  year,  that  some  different 
branding  should  be  used  for  California  raisins.  As  it  is  now, 
we  simply  imitate  the  Spanish  brands,  when  something  dis- 
tinctly Californian  should  be  used. 


WINE-MAKING    IN   CALIFORNIA.  221 

"The  trade  for  California  raisins  of  good  brands  through- 
out the  United  States  has  never  been  as  good  as  this  year, 
and  at  fair  prices.  They  have  been  introduced  where  they 
have  never  been  known  before,  and  it  is  now  only  a  question 
of  time  when,  with  care  in  packing  and  grading,  we  will  en- 
tirely drive  the  imported  raisins  from  America." 

In  a  letter  just  received,  the  same  firm  puts  the  actual  quan- 
tity of  last  year's  crop  at  750,000  boxes,  considerable  above 
their  estimate;  and  estimate  this  season's  pack  at  1,000,000 
boxes,  one  fourth  more  than  last  year. 

The  Cailfornia  process  of  raisin  curing  differs  from  the 
European,  and  is  thus  described  by  Mr.  N.  B.  Blowers,  one 
of  the  veterans  in  that  culture: 

The  grape  should  be  allowed  to  remain  on  the  vine  until 
quite  ripe,  showing  a  yellowish  or  golden  color,  and  being 
more  translucent  than  when  too  green.  Then  they  should  be 
carefully  picked,  and  placed  upon  a  drying  tray,  usually  two 
by  three  feet  in  size,  and  exposed  with  an  inclination  towards 
the  sun,  in  some  convenient  place,  generally  between  the  rows 
in  the  vineyard.  After-  being  sufficiently  exposed  to  become 
about  half  dried  they  are  turned  once  .in  this  manner,  viz. : 
two  workmen  taking  an  empty  tray,  place  it  upon  a  full  one, 
holding  them  together  firmly,  and  with  a  swinging  motion 
turn  them  over,  and  replace  the  now  turned  grapes  in  their 
former  position.  The  turning  should  be  done  in  the  morning, 
before  the  dew  is  quite  off  the  grapes ;  then,  when  the  grapes 
have  become  so  dry  as  to  loose  their  ashy  appearance,  some 
being  a  little  too  green,  and  others  quite  dry  enough,  they  are, 
after  removing  those  that  are  entirely  too  green,  slid  from  the 
tray  into  large  sweat  boxes,  having  a  thick  sheet  of  paper  be- 
tween every  twenty-five  or  thirty  pounds  of  raisins,  then  they 
are  removed  to  the  storeroom  where  they  should  remain  two 
weeks  or  more.  When  ready  to  pack  it  will  be  found  that 
the  too  moist  ones  have  parted  with  their  surplus  moisture, 


222  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

which  has  been  absorbed  by  the  stems  and  drier  raisins.  The 
stems  are  now  tough,  and  the  raisins  soft  and  ready  to  pack. 
They  are  carefully  placed  in  frames  made  of  iron  or  steel. 
The  large  and  fair  ones  being  carefully  placed  in  the  bottom 
of  .the  frames,  the  surplus  stems  and  berries  cut  away  ;  then 
the  average  raisins  are  arranged  in  and  weighed,  placing  five 
pounds  in  each  frame  and  pressed,  but  not  enough  to  break  the 
skin.  They  are  then  passed  to  an  inspector,  who  examines  the 
exposed  side  of  the  raisins,  removing  all  imperfect  ones,  then 
placing  the  wrapper  paper  on  the  frame,  holds  it  in  place  with 
a  wooden  or  steel  plate,  turns  it  bottom  up,  drops  the  left 
end  into  the  box,  slides  the  plate  quickly  from  under  the 
plate  and  it  drops  into  the  box,  then  pressing  slightly  upon 
the  movable  bottom  of  the  frame,  the  frame  is  removed.  The 
bottom  of  the  frame  is  then  pressed  more  firmly,  to  cause  the 
raisins  to  fill  the  space  formerly  occupied  by  the  sides  and 
ends  of  the  frame,  then  it  is  removed  and  the  face  of  the  latter 
is  exposed,  all  imperfect  berries  or  too  wet  ones  are  removed, 
and  all  vacancies  or  hollows  filled  with  large,  loose  raisins. 
The  label  of  the  proprietor  is  then  placed  on  the  face;  the 
ends  of  the  wrapper,  and  then  the  sides  are  folded  over,  the 
box  cover  nailed  on,  and  they  are  ready  for  market. 

The  favorite  varieties  for  raisins  are  the  Muscatelle  Gordo 
Blanco,  or  Muscat  of  Alexandria,  while  a  very  fine  seedless 
raisin,  but  much  smaller,  is  made  from  the  Sultana.  The 
Corrinths,  white  and  black,  so  far  have  not  proven  sufficiently 
successful  here  to  warrant  their  extensive  culture. 

There  is  a  difference  of  opinion  yet  among  raisin  men, 
whether  irrigation  is  absolutely  necessary  or  not.  The  irriga- 
tionists  claim  that  the  berries  are  larger,  more  uniform  and 
showy,  while  the  other  side  claims  finer  flavor  and  more  deli- 
cate bloom.  Not  being  a  raisin  grower  myself,  I  am  not  able 
to  decide  which  is  right,  but  most  of  the  raisins  so  far  have 
been  produced  under  a  system  of  irrigation. 


WINE-MAKING    IN   CALIFORNIA.  223 

During  the  last  year  or  so,  raisin  growers  have  had  a  net 
return  of  from  120  to  200  dollars  per  acre,  and  found  the 
industry  very  profitable,  while,  when  they  sell  their  crop  in 
the  sweat  boxes,  as  is  the  general  custom  now,  they  have 
comparatively  light  expenses,  as  compared  to  the  wine  maker. 
The  future  of  the  California  raisin  trade  seems  to  be  secured, 
and  with  our  rainless  falls  we  have  superior  facilities  for  dry- 
ing to  any  country  on  the  globe. 

It  is  also  an  open  question  yet,  whether  the  heat  of  the 
sun,  or  artificial  heat  in  driers  are  to  be  preferred.  Without 
going  into  this  question  further,  we  may  rejoice  in  the  un- 
disputed fact,  that  every  one  can  make  raisins  without  artifi- 
cial heat. 

As  a  further  evidence  how  California  raisins  are  appre- 
ciated, I  copy  the  following  from  the  New  York  Mail  and 
Express: 

CALIFORNIA  RAISINS  AHEAD. 

Competing  Successfully  With  the  Spanish  Fruit  in  New  York. 

The  California  raisin  has  reached  such  perfection  that  it  is  now  able 
to  compete  successfully  with  the  finest  of  the  Spanish  fruit.  Already 
some  of  the  present  season's  crop  is  in  the  market,  and  presents  a  hand- 
some appearance.  The  loose  native  Muscatel  is  now  packed  by  machin- 
ery, which  has  enabled  the  packers  to  compete  with  the  low-priced 
manuel  labor  of  Spain.  The  "steam  power  stemmer"  stems  and  di- 
vides the  friit  into  three  grades  at  the  rate  of  100,000  pounds  a  day, 
with  the  assistance  of»about  twenty  men.  This  rapidity  of  operation 
would  surprise  the  Spanish  packers  with  their  primitive  methods  of 
stemming  by  hand.  To  this  is  added  a  packing  machine,  which  packs 
the  stemmed  raisins  in  boxes  of  twenty  pounds  weight  each.  A  well- 
known  handler  said  this  morning  : 

"I  must  acknowledge  that  this  season  the  California  raisins  are  su- 
perior to  the  imported  Spanish  fruit.  The  grape  crop  has  been  large 
and  fine,  the  raisins  better  cured,  and,  I  think,  will  command  nearly  if 
not  quite  as  high  a  price  as  the  foreign  product.  Were  it  not  for  the 
Interstate  Commerce  law,  which  has  increased  the  cost  of  transporta- 
tion from  twenty  to  thirty-five  cents  a  tox,  the  native  fruit  could  be 
sold  cheaper.  It  seems  strange  to  me  that  the  government  should  thus 

15 


224  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

impose  a  tax  upon  the  native  products  of  the  country.  I  am  informed 
that  over  1,000,000  boxes,  or  50,000,000  pounds,  of  raisins  are  coming 
Eastward  from  California.  Of  this  quantity,  about  one-tenth,  or  2,000,- 
000  pounds,  will  reach  New  York.  A  part  of  this  shipment  has  al- 
ready arrived,  and  more  will  do  so  next  week.  So  fine  is  the  fruit  that 
it  is  bought  up  to  a  great  extent  before  it  reaches  here.  The  remain- 
der of  the  Eastern  shipment  is  dropped  by  the  way  at  the  principal 
cities.  It  is  my  opinion  that  the  California  raisin  will  soon  drive  the 
foreign  out  of  the  American  market,  and  will  finally  be  exported  to 
Europe.'' 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

INDIVIDUAL  ENTERPRISE. 

It  will  be  impossible,  in  the  limited  space  allotted  to  me, 
to  do  justice,  or  even  mention,  all  the  important  individual  ef- 
forts in  grape  growing,  wine  making  and  cellars,  for  which 
our  State  is  already  justly  famous  ;  nor  would  it  be  of  any ( 
real  benefit  to  enumerate  them  all,  were  such  a  thing  possible. 
But  a  short  description  and  mention  of  a  few  of  the  largest 
arid  most  important  should  find  place,  as  part  of  a  picture  of 
this  immense  industry. 

The  largest  vineyard  in  this  State  is  that  of  Senator  Leland 
Stanford,  at  Vina,  Tehama  County,  on  a  piece  of  rich  allu- 
vial bottom  land  on  the  banks  of  the  Sacramento  River. 
On  his  magnificent  ranch  of  over  50,000  acres,  an  area  of 
about  3  miles  is  now  planted  in  vines.  The  oldest  vineyard 
is  now  about  thirty  years  old  and  was  planted  by  a  Mr. 
Gerke.  To  this  have  been  added  in  1882,  1,021  acres,  in 
1883,  1,053  acres,  in  1885,  900  acres,  a  total  of  3,o54acres. 
All  this  immense  tract  can  be  irrigated  if  thought  advisable, 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  225 

but  so  far  only  the  young  plantations  have  been  watered  the 
first  year,  to  give  the  cuttings  a  start,  and  there  is  no  neces- 
sity for  further  irrigation.  The  leading  varieties  are  Zinfan- 
del,  Trousseau,  Blaue  Elbe,  Burger,  Sultana,  Mission,  Mal- 
vasia,  Orleans  Riesling ;  although  Sauvignon,  Franken  and 
Johannisberg  Riesling,  Chas.  Fontainebleau,  Black  Burgundy, 
Mataro  and  others  are  planted  on  a  smaller  scale.  The  vines 
are  of  course,  not  in  full  bearing  yet,  but  they  produced  last 
year  about  2, 500  tons,  while  the  crop  this  year  was  estimated 
at  5,000  tons,  though  it  may  have  fallen  somewhat  short,  as 
in  most  of  the  vineyards  in  the  State.  On  one  corner  of  these 
immense  vineyards  the  wineries,  distillery,  etc.,  are  located, 
covering  about  4  acres  of  ground.  They  are:  i.  The  old 
cellar,  two  stories  high,  105x157  feet,  capacity  500,000  gal- 
lons. 2.  The  new  fermenting  house  101x169  feet,  two 
stories  high,  capacity  500,000  gallons.  3.  The  new  cellar, 
^66x297  feet,  capacity  1,700,000  gallons.  4.  Distillery, 
32x95  feet.  5.  Brandy  warehouse,  34x100  feet.  There  is 
the  old  Gerke  cellar  additional,  capacity  500,000  gallons, 
and  a  new  bonded  warehouse,  34x100  feet. 

The  machinery  is  all  run  by  steam,  of  Heald's  newest  im- 
proved pattern  of  crushers,  stemmers  and  hydraulic  presses, 
4  crushers,  4  presses,  and  can  work  up  400  tons  of  grapes  per 
day.  The  casks  are  all  oak,  of  a  capacity  of  2000  gallons  each, 
the  fermenting  tanks  of  redwood  10  feet  wide,  with  a  capacity 
of  2,400  gallons  each.  Capt.  H.  W.  Mclntyre,  the  superin- 
tendent of  the  cellars,  is  one  of  the  best  architects  in  the  State, 
and  has  spared  no  pains  to  make  the  buildings  and  machinery 
as  complete  and  practical  as  possible.  Mr.  Smith  is  Farm 
Superintendent,  Mr.  Shackleford  Civil  Engineer.  Most  of 
the  new  buildings  were  put  up  in  the  course  of  this  summer, 
.and  are  of  brick.  During  the  vintage  and  erecting  the  build- 
ings a  force  of  about  1,200  men  were  employed  on  the  place. 
All  the  cellars  are  lighted  by  electricity,  so  that  a  force  can  be 


226  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

kept  working  night  and  day,  if  necessary.  When  Gov.  Stan- 
ford first  conceived  the  idea  of  planting  such  a  large  vineyard, 
he  declared  his  object  to  be  to  furnish  cheap,  wholesome  wine 
to  the  million,  so  that  every  laborer  could  drink  it.  In  a  few- 
years  the  vineyard  bids  fair  to  fulfill  it.  I  doubt  whether  very 
fine,  light  dry  wines  can  be  made  there;  the  tendency  of  soil 
and  climate  would  seem  to  be  more  favorable  to  sweet,  heavy 
wines,  and  the  manufacture  of  brandy.  But  if  good,  dry  wines 
can  be  made  there,  (and  this  season's  operations  seem  to 
prove  it),  the  present  management  will  make  them,  and  with 
all  the  facilities  for  fermenting  and  regulating  the  temperature 
I  have  no  doubt  that  sound  wines  at  least  can  be  produced, 
and  the  object  of  Gov.  Stanford  be  attained. 

The  next  largest  vineyard  in  the  State  is  the  Nadeau  vineyard 
in  Los  Angeles  Co.,  but  my  information  about  it  is  not  as  com- 
plete as  I  could  wish,  as  the  manager,  Mr.  Eggleston,  did  not 
respond  to  my  enquiries,  and  the  notes  I  have  were  only  fur- 
nished me  by  the  courtesy  of  the  officers  of  the  State  Viticultural 
Commission.  These  show  2,401  acres  of  vineyard,  of  which 
i  ,40oacres  are  Mission,  466  acres  Zinfandel,  466  acres  Riesling, 
balance  mixed  varieties.  There  were  on  hand  some  time  ago, 
50,000  gallons  Brandy,  4, 800  gallons  Angelica,  5,000  gallons 
Port,  how  much  dry  wine,  I  am  unable  to  tell.  This  would 
seem  to  indicate  a  tendency  for  the  manufacture  of  sweet  wines 
and  brandy.  The  vineyard  is  still  young,  and  has  not  attained 
its  full  bearing  capacity. 

The  next  largest,  and  the  most  important  perhaps  as 
a  factor  to  solve  many  of  the  problems  of  Viticulture 
in  this  State,  is  that  of  the  Natoma  Company  at  Folsom, 
near  Sacramento.  I  visited  the  vineyards  in  1884,  to- 
gether with  its  then  manager,  Mr.  Horatio  P.  Livermore,  to 
whom  I  am  indebted  for  most  of  the  information  I  give  now; 
and  I  considered  it  then  the  most  promising  large  enterprise 
on  this  coast.  The  subdivision  into  400  acre  tracks,  each  with 


WINE-MAKING  IN    CALIFORNIA.  22-7 

its  foreman  and  separate  working  force,  with  buildings  in  the 
center,  affording  convenient  quarters  for  all  the  men  necessary, 
as  well  as  for  the  work  animals,  barns,  tools  and  tool  sheds, 
struck  me  as  the  only  possible  way  to  work  large  vineyards 
successfully;  .and  I  could  not  help  but  admire  the  organisatory 
talent  of  Mr.  Livermore,  which  was  evident  in  every  direction. 
Everything  seemed  to  go  like  clockwork;  the  young  vineyards 
were  in  a  high  state  of  cultivation,  showing  extraordinary 
growth  and  even  some  fruit;  and  the  many  new  varities  tested 
then, .would  have  been  of  incalculable  benefit  to  our  young 
industry,  if  the  plans  of  Mr.  Livermore  had  been  adhered  to. 
I  think  it  a  public  calamity  that  he  was  forced  to  abandon  a 
task  he  had  so  well  begun;  although  the  vineyards  may  have 
fully  come  up  to  the  expectations  of  the  present  managers  in 
a  pecuniary  point  of  view,  the  benefits  which  would  have 
accrued  to  the  grape  growing  public  at  large,  were  in  a  great 
measure  lost  sight  of.  The  experiments  with  new  varieties, 
imported  by  Mr.  Livermore,  and  which  such  a  company 
-could  have  carried  out  better  than  individuals,  were  virtually 
abandoned;  and  although  the  varieties  were  in  a  measure  dis- 
tributed over  the  State,  and  thus  not  altogether  lost,  the  test- 
ing at  Folsom  or  by  the  Company  was  abandoned.  It  is  be- 
cause I  think  this  enterprise  so  important  in  its  results  to  the 
wine  growing  interests  of  the  State,  that  I  have  given  it  so 
•much  space  in  these  columns.  The  soil  at  Natoma  upon 
which  most  of  the  vineyards  are  located,  is  a  red,  volcanic  soil, 
intermixed  with  stones  and  pebbles,  naturally  well  drained, 
and  would  seem  to  indicate  high  quality  of  wines.  But  the 
climate  is  very  warm,  somewhat  malarious,  and  it  may  be 
more  adapted  to  the  production  of  heavy  sweet  wines  and 
-brandy,  than  to  the  finer  light  dry  wines. 

They  are  situated  in  Sacramento  County,  California,  about 
sixteen  miles  northeast  of  the  city  of  Sacramento,  the  capital  of 
the  State.  The  Sacramento  Valley  Railroad  runs  for  three  miles 


228  GRAPE  CULTURE    AND 

through  the  vineyards,  affording  three  switches  for  shipping 
purposes,  the  central  one  of  which  is  a  regular  station  with 
depot,  post  orifice  and  express  office.  It  is  called  "  Natoma  " 
and  here  are  situated  the  company's  business  offices,  so  that 
no  part  of  the  vineyard  is  over  one  mile  distant  from  a  rail- 
road, which  affords  connection  with  the  entire  railroad  sys- 
tem of  the  State,  also  with  the  transcontinental  railroad  sys- 
tems. The  vineyard  proper  forms  the  southerly  portion  of 
the  "  Rancho  Rio  de  los  Americanos  "  an  original  Mexican 
grant  of  about  9,000  acres,  duly  patented  by  the  United 
States  Government,  which  the  Natoma  Company  purchased 
not  many  years  ago  and  still  owns  almost  in  its  entirety.  It 
lies  on  the  east  bank  of  the  American  River  for  a  distance  of 
seven  miles  and  includes  within  its  borders  the  town  of  Fol- 
som,  for  many  years  of  the  first  importance  as  a  placer  min- 
ing centre. 

The  vineyard  plantation  nowhere  comes  down  to  the 
border  of  the  American  River,  but  is  confined  to  the  benches 
or  slopes  that  run  back,  and  merge  into,  the  rolling  foot-hills. 
Its  elevation  ranges  variously  throughout  its  extent  from  150 
to  300  feet  above  the  sea  level,  and  it  is  distant  from  the 
Pacific  Ocean  about  125  miles  in  a  direct  line  (westward) 
shut  off  therefrom  by  the  Coast  Range  chain  of  mountains, 
which  average  from  4,000  to  6,000  feet  of  elevation  ;  while 
from  the  Sierra  Nevada  range  of  mountains,  which  dominate 
all  California,  and  here  have  an  elevation  of  8,000  to  12,000 
feet,  it  is  distant  about  40  miles.  Thus  the  climate  is  essen- 
tially an  inland  one,  sheltered  from  all  sea  winds  and  fogs, 
scarcely  ever  exposing  the  vineyard  to  frost  damages,  but 
visiting  it,  in  the  vintage  season,  with  extreme  heat  (some- 
times as  high  as  105°  F  in  the  shade)  which  powerfully  stimu- 
lates the  growth  of  the  vines  and  the  development  of  sachar- 
ine  matter  in  the  grapes,  thus  making  the  excess  of  sugar  in. 
the  grapes  a  thing  to  be  guarded  against  in  the  making  of  dry 


WINE-MAKING  IN   CALIFORNIA.  229 

wines,  and  indicating  its  best  specialty  as  perhaps  in  the  di- 
rection of  ports,  sherries  and  other  full-bodied  types  of  wines. 

The  soil  is  a  red  loam,  from  three  to  twelve  feet  in  depth, 
underlain  by  gravel,  and  it  with  cobbles,  so  that  it  may  be 
said  to  be  exceptionally  well  drained,  an  important  feature, 
for  the  winter  rainfall,  doubtless  owing  to  its  proximity  to  the 
Sierras,  is  very  considerable,  sometimes  even  excessive. 

The  vineyard  is  drained  by  Alder  Creek  and  Buffalo  Creek, 
two  water  courses  which  run  across  it  from  east  to  west  and 
carry  its  surplus  waters  into  the  American  river,  which  has  so 
heavy  a  fall  as  to  rapidly  dispose  of  all  floody  waters.  The 
lands  were  heavily  timbered  with  oak  trees,  many  of  them  of 
great  size  and  very  deeply  rooted,  requiring  heavy  expendi- 
ture for  clearance  in  preparation  for  vineyard  planting. 

The  first  vineyard  planting  of  the  company  was  in  the  year 
1876-7,  when  about  no  acres  were  put  out— seventy  acres  to 
Muscat  of  Alexandria  and  forty  acres  to  Flaming  Tokay.  The 
"Muscat  "  was  planted  with  reference  to  raisin  making,  and 
was  the  earliest  considerable  planting  of  that  variety  for  that 
purpose  in  the  State — it  may  bs  stated  here  that  it  proved 
flourishing  and  bore  vigorously,  but  nfter  trying  for  three 
years  the  experiment  of  raisin  making,  the  company  concluded 
that  there  was  too  great  liability  to  early  fall  rains  to  permit  of 
reliable  field  curing  of  raisins,  so  they  abandoned  it  as  a  rai- 
sin vineyard,  and  have  since  sold  its  product  to  the  canners 
and  to  the  Eastern  shippers,  finding  the  latter  always  willing 
to  give  a  preference  to  the  Natoma  product  because  of  size* 
excellent  flavor,  and  special  ability  to  stand  distant  transpor- 
tation. This  initial  plantation  was  followed  in  1879-80  with 
seventy  acres  more;  viz.,  fourty-five  acres  Zinfandel  and 
twenty-five  acres  more  of  Flaming  Tokay. 

In  1 880-8 1  were  put  out  fifty  acres  more  —  of  which 
thirty  acres  Tokay,  ten  Emperor,  five  Seedless  Sultana,  five 
Black  Ferrara. 


230  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

In  1 88 1-2  were  planted  about  seventy  acres,  mostly  Flam- 
ing Tokay  and  Zinfandel — this  brought  the  entire  plant  up 
to  300  acres,  all  of  which  except  the  Zinfandel  was  of  ship- 
ping varieties  of  grapes,  and  consequently  this  part  of  the 
company's  vineyard  has  always  been  known  as  the  "  Shipping 
Vineyard,"  and  its  products  have  always  commanded  a  ready 
sale  for  shipment  to  the  Eastern  markets.  It  lies  directly  on 
the  railroad,  at  no  part  distant  more  than  half  a  mile  there- 
from, with  a  very  extensive  packing  house,  so  that  two  en- 
tire cars  can  be  loaded  at  the  same  time,  and  a  force  of  200 
hands  can  be  accommodated  at  once,  picking,  selecting,  and 
packing  the  grapes,  which  are  placed  without  any  jolting  of 
wagon  transportation,  directly  on  the  cars,  and  are  the  same 
evening  over  the  Sierras  on  their  way  to  Eastern  markets,  at 
least  one  day  ahead  of  the  coast  counties. 

The  grapes  produced  in  this  vineyard  are  large,  firm  ber- 
ries, full  clusters,  and  the  Tokays  are  of  extraordinary  size  of 
bunch,  brilliancy  of  color,  and  durability  to  stand  transporta- 
tion. For  the  last  three  years  shippers  have  freely  paid 
fifty-five  to  sixty-five  dollars  per  ton  for  them  on  board  cars, 
they  furnishing  packages. 

That  shippers  are  justified  in  giving  preference  prices  for 
this  pack  of  grapes  seems  to  be  established  by  the  Eastern  mar- 
ket sales  quotations,  where  the  Natoma  brand  uniformly  brings 
a  higher  price  than  other  packs  (E  G  Chicago,  Sept.  5th,  '87 
quotes  Natoma  Tokays  sold  average  $2.85  per  crates,  while 
other  brands  were  quoted  $2 ©$2.25  per  crate.)  All  this 
shipping  vineyard  is  under  a  complete  system  of  irrigation 
from  the  company's  own  canal,  which  carries  a  large  supply 
of  water  throughout  its  entire  track  and  the  adjacent  coun- 
try, from  Salmon  Falls  on  the  South  Fork  of  the  American 
River,  about  twenty  miles  distant  from  the  vineyard. 

Very  great  judgment  and  moderation  have  to  be  practiced 
in  applying  this  irrigation,  but  it  is  the  company's  experience, 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  231 

that,  with  such  care,  a  timely  drink  or  two  to  the  vines,  in 
the  growing  season,  increases  the  crop,  strengthens  and  am- 
plifies the  foliage  (so  important  in  prevention  of  sunburn  to 
clusters  of  fruit),  enlarges  the  berries,  fills  out. the  bunches 
and  generally  promotes  the  quality  as  well  as  the  quantity 
of  the  yield. 

Many  acres  of  this  shipping  vineyard  have,  under  this  sys- 
tem, yielded  seven  and  eight  tons  to  the  acre  of  shipping 
grapes,  but  it  is  safe  to  say  that,  taking  the  average  of  years 
and  of  acres,  at  least  four  (4)  tons  to  the  acre,  of  selected 
grapes,  in  crates  on  the  cars,  may  be  counted  upon  from  the 
vineyard  for  each  year,  and  since  the  quantity  of  culls  and 
trimmings,  not  packed,  that  go  to  the  wine  house  and  distill- 
ery, go  very  far  towards  paying  all  the  expenses,  it  follows 
that  this  remarkably  favored  vineyard  realizes  upwards  of 
$200  per  acre  per  year.  The  Tokays  are  grown  well  up  from 
the  ground,  are  staked  and  pruned  with  medium  long  canes, 
special  attention  being  paid,  in  the  season  of  growth,  to 
nipping  back  the  long  shoots,  so  as  to  make  denser  the  foliage, 
and  thus  protect  the  clusters  of  fruit  from  that  worst  foe  of 
the  Tokay  grape,  viz  :  "  sunburn." 

In  the  season  of  1882-83  it  was  realized  that  so  complete  a 
demonstration  of  the  fitness  of  Natoma  soil  and  climate  to 
the  growth  of  the  grape  had  been  made  as  to  justify  a  much 
larger  utilization  of  the  company's  lands  for  vineyard,  and, 
accordingly,  the  company  directed  the  then  manager  (one  of 
the  principal  stockholders  as  well),  Horatio  P.  Livermore,  to 
proceed  with  the  immediate  planting  of  1000  acres  more  of 
vineyard. 

Commencing  work  on  November  loth,  1882,  the  land  was 
cleared  of  its  timber,  thoroughly  subsoiled,  and  planted  by 
March  23d,  1883,  work  which  illustrates  strikingly  the  favor- 
able character  of  the  California  winter  climate,  for  nowhere 
else  would  it  have  been  possible,  because  of  probable  inter- 


232  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

ruptions  by  stormy  weather.     This  season's  plant  amounted 
to  965  acres,  as  follows  : 

Verdal,  20  acres  ;  Malaga,  Blues  White,  5  acres  ;  Black 
Ferrara,  10  acres;  which,  being  all  shipping  varieties,  were 
•  planted  in  extension  of  the  shipping  vineyard  ;  and  the  fol- 
lowing exclusively  Wine  varieties,  viz":  Lenoir,  10  acres; 
Zinfandel,  150  acres;  Feher  Zagos,  15  acres;  Meunier,  15 
acres  ;  Crabb's  Black  Burgundy,  50  acres  ;  Chalosse,  10  acres; 
Columbar,  50  acres  ;  Grenache,  60  acres  ;  Chauche  Noir,  65 
acres;  Sauvignon  Verte,  25  acres;  Mataro,  75  acres;  Mo- 
selle Riesling,  20  acres  ;  Orleans  Riesling,  $  acres  ;  Franken 
Riesling,  20  acres  ;  Wests  Prolific,  5  acres ;  Seedless  Sul- 
tana, 10  acres;  Piquepoule  Gris,  3  acres;  Frontignan,  12 
acres  ;  Trousseau,  50  acres  ;  Berger,  85  acres  ;  Malvoisie,  25 
acres  ;  Carignane,  70  acres  ;  Caberenet  Malbec,  20  acres  ; 
Charbonneau,  30  acres  ;  Folle  Blanche,  50  acres. 

This  plant  was  made  entirely  of  cuttings,  and  sufficient 
more  cuttings,  of  the  same  varieties,  were  placed  in  nursery 
for  rooting,  to  similarity  plant  another  1000  acres  in  the  suc- 
ceeding year,  which  the  Company  directed  the  manager  to 
prepare  for,  the  intention  being  to  carry  the  vineyard  up  to 
3000  acres. 

Small  experimental  plantations  were  also  made,  for  test 
purposes,  of  some  of  the  American  resistant  varieties,  Herbe- 
mont,  Rupestris,  Cynthiana  and  Norton's  Virginia  ;  and  ex- 
tensive propagating  of  Lenoir  was  undertaken  for  future 
planting. 

The  Company  having  on  a  tract  of  its  lands,  adjoining  its 
Orchards,  three  miles  from  the  vineyard,  and  near  the  town  of 
Folsom,  a  plantation  of  thrifty  Mission  grape  vines,  upwards 
of  ten  years  old,  it  was  decided  to  graft  these  into  the  choicest 
wine  varieties  which  could  be  imported.  Accordingly,  at  very 
considerable  expense,  there  were  imported  from  France,  Spain, 
Italy,  and  Portugal,  the  cuttings  of  the  following  varieties,  and 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  233 

grafted  into  upwards  of  twenty  thousand  old  Mission  vines  ; 
Carbernet  Sauvignon,  Carbernet  Franc,  Merlot,  Verdot,  Mal- 
bec,  Semillion  Blanc,  Sauvignon  Blanc,  Muscadelle  de  Bor- 
delais,  Aramon,  Petit  Bouschet,  Mourastel,  Cinsaut,  Beclan, 
Poulsard,  Serine,  Mondeuse,  Clairette  Rouge,  Pecoui  Touar, 
Clairette  Blanche,  Ugni  Blanc,  Rousanne,  Marsanne,  Tannat, 
Petite  -Syrah,  Malmsey  Madeira,  Tinta  Madeira,  Verdellho, 
Boal,  Muscatel  Madeira,  Pedro  Xitnenes,  Palomino,  Mantuo 
Castellano,  Veba,  Peruno,  Mantuo  de  Pilas,  Bastardo, 
Mourisco  Preto,  Tinta  Coa,  Morete,  Mourisco  Blanco, 
Tinta  Amarella,  Touriga,  Bokador,  Yellow  Mosler,  Pever- 
ella,  Rothgipler,  Rhulander  Grey,  Slankamenka,  Yellow 
Silk  Grape,  Steinschiller,  Green  Sylvaner,  Spicy  Tramin- 
er,  Green  Veltliner,  White  Vernaccio,  Waelschriesling, 
Zierfandler,  ArTenthaler,  Kadarka,  Lagrein,  St.  Laurent, 
Marzemino,  Portugieser,  Refosco,  Spanna,  Barbera,  Terol- 
dego,  Wildbacher,  Malvasia  Bianca,  Moscato  Rosa,  Rosara, 
Aleatico,  San  Giovetto,  San  Columbano,  Trebbiano,  Cana- 
jola  Nero,  Canajola  Bianco. 

Satisfactory  success  was  attained  with  the  most  of  these 
varieties,  and  thus  was  established  a  store  house  of  viticultu- 
ral  wealth  for  the  State,  which  subsequent  vineyard  planters 
have  largely  and  profitably  availed  themselves  of. 

It  was  fortunate  for  the  State  that  this  work  could  be 
undertaken  by  a  corporation  wherein  those  interested  were 
few  in  number  and  had  ample  means,  and  whose  property 
was  so  favorable,  in  all  respects,  to  such  experimental  test 
work,  and  great  benefits  will  undoubtedly  result  to  the  State 
of  California  therefrom,  though,  since  Mr.  Livermore's  retire- 
ment from  the  active  managership  of  the  Natoma  property 
(which  took  place  in  1885)  not  all  his  wise  and  public  spir- 
ited plans  have  been  carried  out  by  his  successors. 

Continuing  the  plantation  in  the  years  1883-4,  a  decidedly 
unfavorable  season  was  encountered,  owing  to  the  protracted 


234  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

delay  in  the  usual  winter  rains,  rendering  it  impossible  to 
commence,  seasonably,  the  preparation  of  the  ground,  and 
consequently  very  much  curtailing  the  planting  season,  so 
that  there  was  planted  but  600  acres  of  the  1,000  acres  pro- 
jected, the  varieties  being  as  follows  : 

Zinfandel,  100  acres;  Columbar,  16  acres;  Trousseau,  80 
acres ;  Purple  Damascus  (in  shipping  vineyard),  5  acres ; 
Mataro,  100  acres  ;  Chauche  Noir,  36  acres  ;  Chalosse,  24 
acres  ;  Grenache,  65  acres;  Berger,  30  acres;  Folle  Blanche, 
40  acres  ;  Riparia,  7  acres  ;  Pedro  Ximenes,  4  acres  ;  Petit 
Bouschet,  3  acres ;  Mantuo  de  Pilas,  2  acres  ;  Mon- 
deuse,  3  acres;  Bastardo,  2  acres;  Palomino,  10  acres; 
Tannat,  6  acres  ;  Roussanne,  5  acres  ;  Muscadelle  de  Bor- 
delais,  5  acres  ;  Petite  Syrah,  6  acres  ;  Carbernet  Franc,  3 
acres  ;  Verdelho,  4  acres  ;  Tinta  Madeira,  4  acres;  Malmsey 
Madeira,  4  acres  ;  Sauvignon  Blanc,  3  acres. 

Fractional  experimental  blocks  composed  of  the  varieties 
following  : 

Cot  a  que  Rouge,  Cot  a  que  verte,  Carbernet  Sauvignon, 
Semillion  Blanc,  Pineau  D'Aunis,  Tinta  Madeira,  Muscatel 
Spanish  ;  33  acres  in  all. 

There  was  thus  presented  an  entire  planting  of  upwards  of 
1800  acres,  of  which  200  acres,  approximately,  were  shipping 
and  canning  varieties,  and  did  not,  consequently,  interest  the 
Wine  House,  except  so  far  as  their  cullings,  in  packing  for 
shipment,  went  to  the  distillery.  Of  the  strictly  wine  making 
acreage  the  prominent  factors  will  be  seen  to  be  the  following 
varieties:  Zinfandel,  350  acres;  Crabb's  Black  Burgundy, 
50  acres  ;  Chalosse,  34  acres  ;  Columbar,  66  acres  ;  Gren- 
ache, 125  acres;  Chauche  Noir/  100  acres;  Sauvignon  Verte, 
25;  Mataro,  175  acres;  Trousseau,  130  acres;  Berger,  no 
acres;  Carignane,  70  acres;  Malbeck,  20  acres;  Charbon- 
neau,  30  acres;  Folle  Blanche,  90  acres;  Meunier,  15  acres; 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  235 

and  these  varieties,  therefore,  are  what  the  company  will  have 
for  the  present  to  build  the  reputation  of  their  wine  upon. 

In  the  earlier  days  of  their  yield  it  was  not  deemed  advisa- 
ble to  make  wine  of  their  product,  and  it  was  sold  to  Messrs. 
Kohler  &  Van  Bergen,  of  Sacramento,  and  by  them  made  in- 
to wine  with  results  reported  as  most  satisfactory. 

In  this  year,  however,  (1887)  the  company  proposes  to 
make  its  own  wine  and  to  that  end  has  erected  the  first  sec- 
tion of  its  wine  house,  calculating  upon  a  capacity  of  three 
hundred  thousand  gallons,  to  be  increased  in  succeeding 
years  as  the  increased  yield  of  the  vineyard  calls  for  larger  ac- 
commodation. 

All  these  varieties  are  reported  as  showing  a  good  crop  this 
year,  considering  the  age  of  the  vines,  and  if  they  behave  as 
well  in  the  wine  house  as  they  have  in  the  vineyard,  some 
very  interesting  results  may  be  expected,  as  each  kind  will  be 
made  separately. 

The  wine  house  is  situated,  not  on  the  railroad  track  (as  is 
generally  preferred  when  there  is  a  railroad)  but  on  a  bluff 
nearly  in  the  center  of  the  wine  vineyard,  half  a  mile  from 
the  railroad. 

It  is  one  story  high,  covering  ground  space  96x130  feet, 
doubled  walled,  leaving  central  air  space,  is  of  wood,  ceiled 
inside  with  tongued  and  grooved  lumber,  also  similarly  ceiled 
above  to  rafters,  so  as  to  make  practically  a  double  roof. 
Eight  ventilators  regulate  the  temperature,  which,  it  is  claimed, 
has  been  found  easy  to  control,  so  as  to  keep  a  temperature 
of  75°  F  in  the  wine  house  when  upwards  of  ioou  in  the 
shade  outside.  The  roof  is  divided  into  two  gables  and  a 
two  (2)  story  tower  is  built  at  the  end,  to  carry  elevator  and 
crusher,  which  is  Heald's  latest  improved,  operated  by  steam 
engine,  and  handles  forty-five  or  fifty  tons  per  day  of  ten  hours. 

Under  said  tower  on  front  line  of  the  wine  house  runs  the 
driveway  for  loaded  wagons  to  elevator  and  crusher.  Hy- 


236  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

draulic  press  are  also  conveniently  located  under  the  tower.  The 
fermenting  room  holds  forty  fermenting  tanks,  five  feet  deep 
by  nine  feet  across,  capacity  2000  gallons  each.  There  are 
ninety-six  storage  tanks,  eight  feet  high  by  six  feet  across; 
capacity,  each  3000  gallons. 

No  provision  is  yet  made  for  permanent  storage  and  matur- 
ing wine  for  quality,  and  it  may  be  that  delicate  wines, 
which  it  is  desired  to  mature,  will  be  carried  in  some  ware- 
house located  on  San  Francisco  Bay,  at  a  point  suitable  for 
shipping  and  for  maturing  wines. 

A  duplicate  of  this  wine  house  will  be  built,  in  extension 
of  the  present  one,  next  year,  to  accommodate  that  year's 
increase  of  product,  and  similar  additions  will  be  made  as 
product  increases. 

Conveniently  adjacent  to  the  wine  house,  in  a  building  of 
corrugated  iron,  is  a  brandy  distillery,  of  Sanders  &:  Co.'s 
most  approved  make,  rated  to  produce,  from  sound  wine, 
804  gallons  brandy  each,  in  twenty-four  hours,  from  sour  wine, 
574  gallons,  from  pomace,  251  gallons.  Water  tank  houses 
are  attached  to  both  wine  houses  and  distillery,  and  water 
pipes  are  carried  through  both  buildings  for  use  and 
fire  protection. 

The  vineyard  is  most  liberally  planned  and  laid  out. 
Each  block  is  marked  with  its  variety  at  each  corner,  an  ex- 
terior avenue  all  around  it  twenty-four  feet  wide,  and  a  simi- 
lar one  through  the  middle,  parallel  with  the  railroad,  allow 
four  horse  teams  to  be  readily  turned,  when  plowing,  culti- 
vating, &c.  The  vines  are  carefully  staked  with  redwood 
stakes,  the  whole  track  is  very  securely  fenced  with  a  rabbit- 
proof  fence.  For  convenience  of  working  it  is  divided  into 
sections  of  400  acres,  each  section  having  its  foreman's 
house,  barn  for  work  stock,  &c.  The  working  is  centralized 
at  the  headquarters  house,  near  wine  house,  where  reside  the 
superintendent  and  accountant  with  their  families.  The 


WINE-MAKING    IN   CALIFORNIA.  237 

buildings  are  all  first  class,  and  admirably  adapted  for  their 
purposes,  but  are  plain  and  inexpensive. 

Altogether  it  may  safely  be  said  that  the  Natoma  Vineyards 
are  a  most  striking  illustration  of  the  rapid  advance  of  the 
viticultural  interests  in  the  State  of  California,  and  are  a  last- 
ing credit  to  the  judgment  and  ability  of  Horatio  P.  Liver- 
more,  who  planned  and  executed  them  and  who,  had  he 
continued  to  manage  them,  would  have  undoubtedly  worked 
out  many  results  from  the  extensive  importations  of  foreign 
varieties  there  grouped  together,  which  would  have  proved 
of  the  greatest  benefit  to  the  State  at  large  in  its  viticultural 
interests. 

It  is  to  be  regretted  in  this  regard,  that  the  management 
succeeding  Mr.  Livermore,  has  failed  to  carry  out  his 
plans,  has  neglected  to  prosecute  many  of  the  interesting 
experiments,  so  wisely  instituted  at  N*atoma,  and  has  preferred 
to  run  the  property  solely  for  immediate  commercial  results. 
It  is  believed  that  thus  have  been  lost  many  opportunities  of 
great  future  enhancement  of  the  value  of  their  own  property, 
and  of  concurrent  inestimable  benefit  to  the  viticultural  in- 
terests of  California;  for  never  in  California  were  there  grouped 
in  any  one  vineyard,  so  many  promising  features  as  at  Natoma, 
and  no  where  could  they  have  been  so  readily  and  profitably 
worked  to  a  fruitage,  had  the  policy  which  originated  the 
vineyard  been  maintained. 

One  of  the  important  enterprises  of  this  kind  are  the  Sunny 
Slope  vineyards,  formerly  owned  by  Mr.  L.  J.  Rose,  near  San 
Gabriel,  California,  but  lately  sold  to  an  English  syndicate. 
Mr.  Rose,  Viticultural  Commissioner  for  the  Los  Angeles  dis- 
tricts, is  one  of  the  pioneers  of  grape  culture  in  the  State,  and 
some  of  his  vineyards  are  sixty  years  old,  being  among  the 
oldest  in  the  State,  and  yet  in  a  flourishing  condition.  In 
1 8*86,  Mr.  Rose  made,  at  his  extensive  wineries  and  distillery 
225,000  gallons  of  wine,  of  which  100,000  were  red  wines, 


GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

125,000  white  wine,  and  60,000  gallons  of  brandy.  I  have 
no  later  dates.  His  leading  varieties  are  Trousseau,  Mission, 
Mataro  for  red,  with  some  Crabbs  Burgundy  (Refosco)  Blaue 
Kibe,  Burger  and  Sauvignon  or  Pedro  Ximenes  for  white. 

The  San  Gabriel  Wine  Company,  J.  de  Barth  Shorb,  Pres- 
ident and  Manager,  have  also  a  very  large  establishment,  but 
as  I  applied  to  Mr.  Shorb  for  information,  and  received  only 
a  very  curt  reply,  that  he  had  no  time  to  give  it.  I  am  unable 
to  give  particulars. 

A  very  important  enterprise  is  that  of  Mr.  Juan  Gallegos, 
at  Mission  San  Jose,  Alameda  county,  also  lately  sold  to  a 
company;  which,  however,  purchased  only  the  winery  and 
water  right,  casks,  tanks,  and  250,000  gallons  of  wine,  at  a 
valuation  of  $300,000  ;  Mr.  Gallegos  reserving  the  vineyard 
of  550  acres,  but  agrees  to  sell  the  grapes  to  the  Company. 
The  winery  has  a  capacity  for  storing  one  million  five  hun- 
dred thousand  gallons  on  first  and  second  floors,  while  the 
third  story  has  a  capacity  for  fermenting  one  million  gallons. 
The  wine  house  is  built  of  brick  and  stone,  240x110  feet  and 
contain  two  crushers,  two  elevators,  one  hydraulic  press,  and 
all  the  necessary  apparatus,  casks,  tanks,  etc.,  besides  the 
distillery  35x85,  and  a  frame  building  for  fermenting  purposes, 
cooper  shop,  etc.,  with  abundance  of  water  and  water  right. 
The  vineyard  is  550  acres,  containing  the  following  varieties. 

RED. 

Zinfandel  435  acres,  Mataro  34  acres,  Cabernet  SauvignOn 
24  acres,  Burgundy  16  acres,  Trousseau  6  acres,  Tannat  5 
acres,  Mondeuse  4  acres,  Petit  Bouschet  4  acres.  Total, 
528  acres. 

WHITE. 

Green  Riesling  n  acres,  Sauvignon  Vert  (Pedro  Ximenes) 
8  acres,  Clairette  Blanche  3  acres.  Total,  22  acres. 

While  admiring  the  enterprise  of  Mr.  Gallegos,  in  building 


WINE-MAKING   IN  CALIFORNIA.  239 

so  large  a  winery,  and  planting  so  large  a  vineyard,  1  cannot 
help  but  warn  my  readers  against  such  a  selection  of  varieties. 
If  they  will  examine,  they  will  see  that  there  are  but  twenty- 
two  acres  of  white  wine  varieties,  ninety-three  acres  of  other 
red  wine  varieties,  and  435  acres  of  Zinfandel.  Only  imagine 
over  three-fourths  of  the  whole  crop  of  one  variety,  ripening 
at  the  same  time,  and  as  difficult  a  variety  also  as  the 
Zinfandel.  I  would  not  like  to  be  wine  maker  there,  and 
think  this  is  one  of  the  examples  "  how  not  to  do  it"  in  the 
selection  of  varieties. 

While  these  are,  perhaps,  the  largest  enterprises  of  their  kind 
in  the  State,  there  are  hundreds,  fully  large  enough,  and 
which  were  built  up  from  small  beginnings  by  the  owners 
themselves.  Among  these,  Napa  Valley  may  claim  a  promi- 
nent part.  Among  those  who  have  their  own  vineyards  and 
mainly  work  up  their  own  grapes  are  Mr.  G.  Groezinger,  at 
Yountville,  who  has  a  vineyard  of  450  acres,  and  made  about 
700,000  gallons  of  wine  last  year;  Mr.  H.  W.  Crabb  at  Oak- 
ville,  vineyard  of  350  acres,  and  a  vintage  of  half  a  million 
gallons  last  year.  Mr.  Crabb  is  a  living  example  of  pluck  and 
enterprise.  Commencing  very  small  and  in  very  unfavorable 
times,  he  has  now  one  of  the  most  flourishing  vineyards  in 
the  State,  his  winery  and  distillery  are  a  small  village  by 
themselves;  his  wines  have  a  reputation  not  confined  to  this 
'coast,  but  widely  spread  over  the  Eastern  States.  He  has  a 
collection  of  over  300  varieties  of  grapes,  fruiting  and  growing 
on  his  own  premises,  and  is  so  familiar  with  them  that  he  is 
unquestionably  the  best  authority  on  grapes  in  the  State. 
Public  spirited  in  the  best  sense  of  the  word,  all  the  informa- 
tion he  has  gained  is  at  the  service  of  everyone,  and  he  is  al- 
ways prominent  wherever  the  interests  of  the  grape  growers 
can  be  served  best.  Such  men  are  the  benefactors  of  their  race 
and  of  their  calling,  and  it  affords  me  pleasure  to  acknowl- 
edge the  debt  of  gratitude  we  owe  them.  But  I  think  I  also 

16 


240  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

repeat  but  the  wish  of  his  many  friends,  that  he  should  not 
strain  his  powers  too  much,  as  he  must  necessarily  do,  con- 
ducting all  his  business  nearly  alone.  Such  lives  are  too  val- 
uable to  be  shortened  by  overwork.  Another  of  our  pioneers 
is  Mr.  Chas.  Krug,  and  although  at  present  rather  "under  a 
cloud,"  brought  about  by  his  over-sanguine  temperament,  he 
has  done  a  great  deal  to  advance  viticulture  to  its  present 
prominence  in  Napa  County,  and  his  energy  and  pluck  will 
soon  overcome  all  temporary  obstacles;  Napa  Valley,  and  es- 
pecially St.  Helena,  owes  him  much  of  its  present  prosperity 
and  prominence.  Mr.  Wm.  Scheffler,  of  Edge  Hill  Vine- 
yard, Beringer  Bros.,  Gustave  Niebaum,  M.  M.  Estee,  are 
among  the  largest  producers  of  the  valley,  and  Messrs.  Ber- 
ringer  Bros. ,  whose  cellars  are  excavated  from  the  solid  rock, 
and  Capt.  Niebaum's  at  Rutherford,  designed  by  Capt.  Mc- 
Intyre,  strive  for  the  palm  of  the  best  cellars  in  the  valley  ; 
which  is  not  a  small  honor  when  we  consider  that  there  are 
over  two  hundred  wine  cellars  in  all  within  a  distance  of  about 
twenty-five  miles,  with  a  capacity  of  storing  6,000,000  gal- 
lons. The  wine  makers  who  purchase  grapes  and  manufac- 
ture them  into  wine  are  mostly  located  at  Napa,  and  among 
these  the  Uncle  Sam  Wine  Cellars,  formerly  C.  Anduran  & 
Co.,  now,  since  the  death  of  Mr..  Anduran,  Carpy  &  Co.  is 
the  largest.  They  manufacture  mostly  clarets  for  the  New 
Orleans  and  Southern  trade,  have  a  capacity  of  nearly  a  mil- 
lion gallons,  and  will  make  about  6, 000,000  gallons  this  year. 
They  not  only  purchase  grapes  from  Napa  County,  but- also 
from  Solano,  Yolo,  and  Santa  Clara.  The  average  price  has 
been  fifteen  dollars  per  ton,  delivered  at  Napa,  for  Zinfandel 
and  other  good  varieties;  from  ten  to  twelve  dollars  per  ton 
for  Mission  and  Malvasia.  G.  Migliavacca  and  sons  have  ak 
so  enlarged  their  wineries  to  about  350,000  capacity,  and  the 
Napa  Valley  Wine  Co.,  Mr.  Priber,  manager,  may  work  up 
about  the  same  quantity.  Mr.  Mathews,  of  the  Lisbon 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  241 

winery,  manufactures  mostly  Sherry  and  Port,  and  his  winery, 
to  a  large  extent  built  by  himself,  is  a  striking  evidence  of  in- 
dividual skill  and  enterprise. 

Sonoma  county  is  the  friendly  rival  of  Napa  in  the  pro- 
duction of  fine  wines  and  large  enterprises.  Mr.  J.  de  Turk, 
the  commissioner  for  that  district  and  also  one  of  the  largest 
wine  makers,  reports  the  crop  of  1886  as  3,500,000  gallons 
made  from  25,000  tons  of  grapes.  Mr.  de  Turk  reports  this 
season's  crop  to  be  about  33  per  cent,  short  of  last  year, 
owing  to  frosts,  coulure,  and  dry  weather  during  vintage. 
Among  its  largest  producers  and  dealers  are  J.  de  Turk,  E. 
H.  Sheppard,  Kohler  &•  Frohling,  Chauvet,  Aguillon  at 
Sonoma,  and  especially  the  venerable  pioneers  'of  grape  cult- 
ure, Mr.  Craig,  J.  Gundlach,  Julius  Dresel.  To  these  last 
especially  belongs  the  honor  of  making  a  reputation  for 
choice  white  wines  for  the  State,  as  well  as  taking  the  initia- 
tory steps  of  combating  the  phylloxera  by  the  introduction 
of  American  vines.  I  venture  to  say  that  there  are  not  finer 
white  wines  to  be  found  in  the  State  than  at  Gundlach's 
Rhine  farm  at  Sonoma,  or  the  adjoining  cellars  of  J.  Dresel 
&  Co.,  nor  can  a  more  striking  illustration  of  the  complete 
resistance  of  the  Riparia  be  found  than  in  their  vineyards, 
devastated  by  the  insect  ten  years  ago,  planted  with  Riparias 
in  1880,  1881-82,  arfd  since  grafted  with  choice  varieties. 
They  are  the  pioneers  in  this,  and  have  done  as  much  for 
the  permanent  establishment  of  grape  culture,  even  more, 
than  many  a  one  who  has  planted  a  thousand  acre  vineyard. 

Capt.  J.  H.  Drumrnond,  of  Glen  Ellen,  has  done  a  great 
work  by  importing  the  choicest  varieties  of  vines,  trying  dif- 
ferent methods  of  training  them,  and  by  his  choice  wines, 
which  have  been  favorably  noticed  at  every  exposition,  dem- 
onstrating the  fact  that  California  is  qualified  to  rank  with 
any  part  of  Europe  in  the  production  of  choice  wines.  Mrs. 
Kate  F.  Warfield  and  Mrs.  Hood  have  demonstrated  that 


242  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

women  are  as  able  to  manage  vineyards  and  wine  cellars,  as 
the  majority  of  men,  and  altogether  old  Sonoma  has  a  good 
record  to  show  of  individual  effort  and  pluck. 

Santa  Clara  County  can  also  show  many  instances  of  in- 
dividual enterprise.  Foremost  among  them  is  our  lamented 
friend  Chas.  Le  Franc,  of  whose  untimely  death  I  was  in- 
formed but  a  few  days  ago.  I  will  remember  his  kindly  face 
and  the  royal  welcome  at  his  winery  in  1881,  which 
greeted  the  then  stranger  to  this  coast,  and  his  fine  wines,  of 
which  we  partook  at  his  wine  cellars.  Both  he  and  Gen. 
Naglee  have  "  gone  to  their  fathers,"  but  ought  not  to  be 
forgotten  when  the  muster  roll  of  the  Pioneers  in  Grape  Cult- 
ure is  called.  Santa  Clara  has  many  large  vineyards,  Capt. 
Merithew,  John  T.  Doyle,  J.  B.  Portal,  J.  Pfeffer,  Paul  O. 
Burnsbe  and  others,  and  claims  to  make  as  good  red  wines 
as  any  part  of  the  State.  From  here,  many  of  the  choice 
Bordeaux  varieties  were  first  distributed,  and  the  greater 
part  of  their  plantations  were  of  that  class. 

In  Fresno  County,  the  Barton  Estate  Company  now  own 
the  vineyard  planted  by  Mr.  Barton,  although  he  still  retains  a 
large  part  of  the  stock,  and  is  made  the  managing  director  for 
three  years.  This  vineyard  contains  about  500  acres,  but 
it  is  the  intention  to  purchase  and  plant  320  acres  more. 
Last  season's  crop  was  about  270,000  gallons,  and  about 
300,000  are  expected  this  year.  They  have  fine  cellars  and 
fermenting  houses;  and  everything  is  planned  on  a  most  ex- 
tensive scale.  Captain  Eisen  has  the  oldest  vineyard  there, 
of  some  400  acres,  and  extensive  cellars.  Mr.  Eggers  has 
also  a  large  winery,  and  Lachman  &  Jacoby  are  interested  in 
another.  Fresno  produces  very  heavy  wines,  and  would 
seem  to  indicate  a  special  adaptation  to  Angelica,  Port  and 
Sherry,  while  I  doubt  that  it  will  ever  produce  fine,  dry, 
light  wines.  It  also  excels  in  raisins,  and  in  these  two 
branches  of  the  grape  industry  it  has  a  great  future.  It 


WINE  MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  243 

would  lead  too  far  if  I  enumerated  all  the  individual  enter- 
terprises  in  the  State.  There  are  so  many  that  this  would  be 
an  endless  task.  We  have  enterprising  wine  men  in  all  sec- 
tions of  the  State,  and  it  would  seem  next  to  impossible  to 
enumerate  them  all. 

But  it  would  not  be  fair  to  forget  our  dealers,  who  have 
done  so  much  to  find  and  open  a  market  for  our  wines. 
Among  those  who  were  among  the  first  growers  of  grapes,  as 
well  as  dealing  in  wines,  I  will  name  our  departed  friend 
Chas.  Kohler,  who  started  the  oldest  winery  in  Los  Angeles, 
and  was  one  of  the  first  to  enter  the  markets.  J.  Gundlach, 
Julius  Dresel,  and  Chas.  Krug  all  entered  the  market  at  an 
early  day,  and  also  contributed  greatly,  by  their  importation 
of  choice  foreign  varieties,  to  raise  the  quality  of  our  product. 

Nor  should  Col.  Agaston  Haraszthy  and  his  son  Arpad,  be 
forgotten.  Col.  Haraszthy  imported  perhaps  the  largest  col- 
lection of  foreign  vines  into  the  State  at  an  early  day,  and  the 
industry  is  greatly  indebted  to  his  efforts.  Mr.  Crabb  has 
opened  quite  a  large  Eastern  trade,  and  many  of  our  large 
growers  are  following  these  examples.  Dreyfuss  &  Co.  have 
large  vineyards  and  wineries  near  Anaheim,  and  also  one  of 
the  largest  wine  houses  in  San  Francisco.  G.  Eschelbach, 
near  Santa  Ana,  is  a  large  grower  and  dealer,  so  are  J.  de 
Turk  at  Santa  Rosa,  J.  L.  Rose,  and  the  San  Gabriel 
Wine  Co. 

Of  those  who  have  only  dealt  in  wines,  without  producing 
them,  perhaps  S.  Lachman  &  Co.  of  San  Francisco,  are  the 
most  prominent.  Their  new  wine  house  on  Brannan  Street 
is  a  monster  institution,  will  easily  store  a  million  gallons, 
and  is  a  lasting  monument  to  its  builder,  Mr.  S.  Lachman. 
It  combines  great  durability,  immense  storage  capacity,  and 
ventilation  with  convenience  for  working  and  handling  all 
kinds  of  wine,  which  can  hardly  be  excelled  anywhere. 

I  have  tried  to  give  a  faint  outline  of  the  individual  enter- 


244  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

prise  in  California.  I  am  aware  that  I  cannot  do  justice  to 
all,  that  many  were  omitted  who  well  deserve  a  place.  But 
my  readers  must  take  the  will  for  the  deed,  and  while  I  have 
tried  to  give  a  brief  sketch  of  some  embarked  in  this  great 
industry,  it  was  next  to  impossible  to  remember  all  and  do 
them  justice.  This  would  require  a  separate  volume,  and 
an  abler,  though  perhaps  no  more  willing  pen  than  mine;  and 
it  would  be  an  interesting  task  indeed  to  write  a  history  of 
the  Pioneers  of  the  Wine  Industry,  which  I  hope  some  of  my 
"  brethren  of  the  quill"  will  undertake,  before  their  "  deeds 
of  peace "  have  become  obsolete,  and  their  memory  is 
blotted  out  by  the  hand  of  time. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

CO-OPERATION    IN    VITICULTURE. 

While  I  am  aware  that  individual  enterprise  has  already 
worked  wonders  in  this,  as  in  every  branch  of  industry  on  this 
Coast,  and  no  one  can  be  more  willing  and  ready  to  appre- 
ciate its  efforts,  yet  I  believe  that  still  more  could  be  accom- 
plished by  co-operation  of  the  grape  growers;  throughout  the 
State  as  well,  as  by  combined  efforts  in  each  community  and 
district. 

Our  Viticultural  societies,  State  as  well  as  in  each  District, 
have  done  a  great  deal  of  good  already,  by  their  meetings  and 
discussion  to  diffuse  knowledge  by  interchange  of  opinion, 
comparing  samples  of  wine  and  grapes,  etc.  They  should  be 
attended  by  every  grape  grower ;  it  will  be  a  change  from  his- 
daily  routine,  and  he  will  return  to  it  with  knowledge  gained. 


WINE-MAKING    IN     CALIFORNIA.  245 

new  ideas  awakened,  feeling  more  able  to  cope  with  his  task, 
and  encouraged  by  the  success  and  example  of  others.  We 
should  meet  in  a  friendly  feeling  of  rivalry,  with  tolerance  of 
the  views  of  others,  and  ready  to  impart  what  we  know,  re- 
ceiving the  knowledge  of  others  in  return.  We  have  two  im- 
portant institutions  in  common,  the  State  University  and  its 
Viticultural  Department,  and  the  State  Board  of  Viticulture. 
Both  have  already  given  us  varied  information,  and  are  con- 
tinuing to  do  so.  Let  us  strengthen  their  hands  by  ready  and 
willing  co-operation  with  them,  so  that  they  feel  that  their 
efforts  are  appreciated  and  supported,  and  are  thereby  en- 
couraged to  further  the  good  work  whenever  they  can.  This 
is  co-operation  in  its  broadest  sense. 

But  we  should  also  initiate  it  in"  every  community,  in  every 
district  and  valley  of  this  broad  State.  Let  us  form  local 
clubs,  meet  once  a  month,  at  least,  and  exchange  ideas. 
There  is  a  still  stronger  reason  for  'this  than  for  State  Societies, 
for  all  the  knowledge  gained,  all  the  experiments  made  by  us 
as  well  as  our  neighbors,  comes  directly  home  to  us,  and  can 
be  applied  to  our  own  case,  in  our  own  vineyards  and  cellars. 
Let  us  not  have  any  secrets,  but  act  with  the  conviction  that 
the  common  good  is  also  the  good  of  the  individual ;  and 
have  no  other  ambition  but  that  of  applying  the  knowledge 
gained,  more  practically  and  forcibly  than  our  neighbors.  Let 
the  knowledge  gained  be  common  property,  and  the  best  man 
win  in  the  common  race  after  perfection. 

Still  a  more  intimate  system  of  co-operation  can  be  folio  wed 
by  each  neighborhood  ;  where  we  can  unite  by  purchasing 
labor  saving  implements  in  common  and  forcommon  use  ; 
helping  one  another  to  prepare  our  vineyards,  by  using  the 
same  teams  in  turn  to  break  land,  subsoil,  etc  ;  and  where 
there  are  several  small  growers,  each  unable  to  build  cellars 
and  purchase  machinery,  tanks  and  casks  ;  three  or  four  can 
unite,  build  a  common  cellar,  of  which  one  of  them,  perhaps 


246  ORAPE  CULTURE  AND 

more  skilled  than  the  others,  can  take  charge,  and  work  up 
the  product  of  all.  This  will  lessen  the  cost  to  all,  they  can 
make  a  better  product,  more  uniform  and  in  larger  quantities, 
thus  have  better  chances  to  sell,  and  cheaper  transportation 
than  each  could  have  alone.  They  will  save  in  purchasing 
stakes,  machinery  and  casks  together;  in  freight,  in  labor,  in 
building,  and  again  in  selling  and  transportation.  In  fact, 
they  can  work  more  profitably  in  every  way.  But  to  do  this, 
there  should  be  perfect  harmony,  and  all  jealousy  be  absorbed  in 
the  common  interest.  The  advantage  gained  by  thus  combin- 
ing work,  capital,  and  knowledge,  are  so  apparent  and  manifold, 
that  they  must  at  once  appear  to  every  sensible  thinking  mind. 

Co-operation  can  also,  and  ought  to  exist  between  the  wine 
maker  without  means,  and  the  capitalist.  Both  can  combine  ; 
the  grower  in  furnishing  good  wine,  and  the  capitalist  to  store 
it  for  him,  making  advances  which  will  enable  the  grower  to 
work  on,  and  for  which  the  wine  offers  ample  security,  until 
it  is  aged  and  finished,  ready  for  the  world's  market.  If  capital 
is  thus  combined,  they  can  erect  ample  buildings,  engage  a 
competent  man  as  cellar  master,  offer  greater  inducements  to 
Eastern  and  foreign  dealers,  who  can  secure  large  lots  of  uni- 
form wines,  and  fully  developed  goods  that  will  please  their 
customers,  and  gain  a  reputation  for  our  products  which  they 
could  not  acquire  under  the  system  followed  so  far. 

These  are  but  a  few  of  the  many  advantages,  which  a 
thorough  system  of  co-operation  would  secure  for  us.  The 
reader  will  easily  see  where  it  can  be  made  applicable  to  his 
case. 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  247 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

WOMAN    IN    THE    VINEYARD. 

I  have  already  taken  occasion  to  allude  in  the  preface,  to 
the  warm  interest  some  ladies  have  taken  in  our  industry,  and 
that  some  of  the  best  managed  vineyards  and  wine  cellars  are 
under  the  control  and  personal  supervision  or  women.  Miss 
Austin,  at  Fresno,  planted  and  managed  for  years  one  of  the 
.largest  and  finest  raisin  vineyards,  gained  enviable  notoriety 
for  the  excellence  of  her"  products,  and  although  now  she  has 
taken  a  male  partner  of  her  joys  and  sorrows,  I  do  not  doubt 
that  her  interest  and  influence  is  as  prominent  and  beneficial 
as  before.  What  I  now  wish  to  place  before  my  readers  is 
the  wide  field  of  pleasant  labor  for  women  which  our  beloved 
industry  opens  Co  them  ;  a  field  in  which  I  have  no  doubt 
that  many  will  find  pleasant  change  and  relief;  while  to 
thousands  of  industrious  women  it  would  offer  a  more  healthy 
means  of  gaining  an  honorable  living,  than  the  work  in  fac- 
tories, the  scanty  pittance  they  can  earn  with  their  needle  at 
sewing  and  embroidering,  or  the  still  more  unhealthy  work  of 
washing  and  ironing. 

Let  me  not  be  understood  as  advising  that  our  fair  friends 
should  take  the  hoe  and  the  plow,  or  drive  the  stakes,  and  do 
the  hard  work  in  the  vineyard.  These  are  not  for  them,  and 
every  true  man  and  American  citizen  will  rejoice  with  me 
that  we  live  in  a  country  where  woman  is  spared  them.  But 
there  are  many  of  the  lighter  and  more  pleasant  operations, 
which  they  can  do  as  well  and  better  even  than  men,  as  their 
fingers  are  more  nimble  and  quick  than  our  more  clumsy 
appendages.  Let  us  consider  them  in  succession;  and  I 


248  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

think  my  fair  friends  will  be  surprised  to  see  how  much  they 
can  do  in  the  vineyard;  provided  always,  that  they  have  not 
more  pressing  duties  at  home  as  wives,  mothers,  daughters  or 
sisters,  but  wish  to  earn  their  living  in  a  pleasant,  profitable 
and  healthy  manner. 

Let  us  begin  in  the  winter,  when  the  men  are  pruning  the 
vineyard  and  follow  it  up  to  the  vintage. 

First,  there  are  cuttings  to  make  from  the  trimmings,  which 
the  men  can  bring  in  for  them,  and  which  they  can  cut 
easily,  with  one  of  the  little  grape  shears  described  and  figured 
in  picking  grapes.  This  they  can  do  at  or  near  the  farm  house 
in  pleasant  weather,  and  I  have  seen  them  cut  and  bundle 
from  two  to  three  thousand  per  day.  At  the  usual  price  paid 
to  men,  where  they  make  them  by  the  thousand,  50  cts;  they 
would  earn  from  $i  to  $1.50  per  day,  and  I  would  not  pay 
them  a  cent  less  than  men,  because  they  are  women,  and  gen- 
erally work  cheaper  ;  but  think  them  entitled  to  full  pay. 
Then  comes  the  tying  in  the  vineyard,  when  it  has  been 
pruned,  and  I  am  sure  that  I  would  be  witting  to  pay  them 
full  wages,  as  their  deft  fingers  will  do  the  work  quicker,  and 
generally  more  accurate  than  men.  Then  comes  suckering, 
thinning  and  pinching  the  young  growth,  all  easy  and  pleas- 
ant work;  tying  of  the  young  growth  in  grafts,  etc.,  which 
will  continue  for  several  months.  If  their  bright  eyes  are 
protected  by  a  pair  of  goggles,  they  can  also  do  the  sulphur- 
ing with  a  pair  of  bellows.  This  will  take  us  nearly  to  the 
vintage  ;  and  at  grape  picking  I  am  certain  they  can  do  as 
much  and  as  good  work  as  men,  and  should  earn  as  good 
wages,  besides  all  the  grapes  they  can  eat,  and  a  glass  of 
wine  occasionally  to  make  their  eyes  more  bright,  their 
cheeks  more  rosy,  and  their  steps  more  elastic  than  they  ever 
will  be  in  the  din  and  impure  air  of  factories,  or  in  the  close 
sewing  room. 

But  many  will  say  :   "  This  may  be  so,  but  it  is  not  cus- 


WINK-MAKING   IN    CALIFORNIA.  249 

ternary.  It  is  not  considered  quite  stylish,  or  the  proper 
thing  for  women,  to  work  outdoors."  To  these  I  would  say, 
"  I  know  of  hundreds  of  estimable  ladies  who  work  their  own 
flower  gardens,  water  and  tend  them;  and  I  have  never  seen 
the  finger  of  reproach  pointed  at  them  for  doing  so,  but  they 
were,  if  anything,  held  in  higher  esteem  by  their  neighbors 
and  friends  for  thus  seeking  recreation  and  pleasure  among 
God's  choicest  gifts.  Throw  away  this  mawkish  sentiment, 
fallacious  as  it  is;  and  believe  that  all  honest  labor,  commen- 
surate to  your  strength,  is  ennobling  instead  of  degrading  ; 
that  "  to  the  pure  all  things  are  pure,"  and  certainly  there  can 
be  nothing  wrong  in  light  work,  under  God's  own  sky,  among 
the  choicest  of  His  handiwork,  and  in  daily  and  intimate  com- 
munion with  Nature,  which  will  naturally  "lead  you  up  to 
Nature's  God."  I  hope  that  my  fair  readers,  (and  I  am  vain, 
enough  to  hope  that  I  will  have  many)  will  see  in  this,  not  a 
fanciful  and  unreal  theory,  but  help,  by  their  example  and 
advice  to  make  it  a  practical  reality.  I  would  not  add  one 
single  iota  of  labor  to  the  task  of  those  who  already  have  their 
full  share;  I  would  rather  lighten  it  by  giving  to  each  good 
housewife  a  pleasant  companion  and  friend,  who  can  help  her 
occasionally,  and  spend  her  spare  time  in  the  vineyard  as  in- 
dicated ;  and  furnish  pleasant  and  light  employment  to  thou- 
sands, who  are  now  confined  in  the  cities,  and  inadequately 
paid  for  work  that  will  eventually  ruin  their  constitution.  I 
want  to  bring  them  to  a  healthier  atmosphere,  morally  and 
physically,  than  they  now  breathe.  And  I  am  confident  that 
my  lady  friends,  with  their  usual  good  sense,  will  aid  in  the 
good  work. 


250  GKAPE  CULTURE  AND 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

COST     OF     ESTABLISHING     A      VINEYARD,      AND      ITS     PROBABLE 
RETURNS. 

That  this  must,  of  necessity,  vary  very  much  in  different 
sections  of  the  State,  is  apparent  to  anyone  at  once.  We 
can,  however,  irake  a  more  safe  calculation  now,  when  wine 
and  grapes  are  so  low  that  they  can  hardly  get  any  lower  ; 
than  a  few  years  ago,  when  the  prices  ruled  high,  and  wine 
makers  were  outbidding  each  other,  bringing  prices  up  to  an 
unnatural  height,  and  when  prices  of  wines  declined,  they 
must  necessarily  loose. 

We  will  take  for  our  estimate  a  raw  piece  of  land,  which 
has  to  be  cleared,  and  which  can  be  bought  for  $50  per  acre 
in  one  of  the  northern  counties  : 

Clearing  land $25.00 

Preparing  land,  plowing,  harrowing  and  rolling 5.00 

600  vines,  Riparias  or  Californicas 10.00 

Marking  and  planting 5.00 

Cultivation,  first  year 10.00 

second  year 15.00 

Grafting,  including  cost  of  scions 5.00 

Staking  and  tying 15.00 

Cultivation  and  pruning,  third  year 20.00 


Total $110.00 

The  fourth  year,  if  the  soil  is  of  ordinary  fertility,  the  vine- 
yard ought  to  pay  for  cultivating  and  even  more.  We  will 
make  our  estimate  of  returns  from  the  fifth  year,  when  it 
ought  to  be  in  full  bearing,  and  the  following  years  would  be 
about  the  same  average  : 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  251 

Five  tons  of  grapes  at  $12  per  ton $60.00 

Deduct  from  this  for  labor $20.00 

Interest  on  land  and  capital  invested 15.00 

35.00 

Net    profit 125.00 

This,  as  remarked  before,  is  subject  to  many  variations,  ac- 
cording to  cost  of  land,  cost  of  clearing  and  cultivating, 
prices  realized  for  grapes,  etc.  "But  it  may  be  callo. 
average;  and  the  grapes  estimated  as  low  as  good  grapes  can 
be  sold  and  raised.  The  present  prospects  are  that  they  wi]J 
be  from  $12  to  $15  this  season  in  Napa,  red  grapes  bringing 
the  first,  white  grapes  the  latter  price,  and  even  higher.  In 
other  sections,  where  grapes  are  still  cheaper,  they  will  also 
produce  more  to  the  acre.  These  are,  so  I  think,  bottom 
prices.  If  the  condensed  must  industry  steps  in  to  make 
a  market  for  our  red  wine  grapes,  and  there  are  more  wine 
storage  houses  established,  it  will  relieve  the  present  glut,  and 
we  will  receive  better  paying  prices  again.  But  even  as  it  is, 
it  is  better  returns  on  the  investment  of  capital  than  wheat  or 
grain  in  general  will  furnish,  and  far  better  than  most  mercan- 
tile ventures  will  bring. 

Raisin  making  and  table  gropes  pay  much  better  at  present 
than  raising  wine  grapes.  Yet  a  few  years  ago,  raisin  makers 
were  down  hearted  on  account  of  coulure,  stagnation  in  the 
market,  and  low  prices.  Since  they  improved  the  quality  of 
their  goods,  and  freight  to  the  East  have  been  reduced,  bet- 
ter modes  of  packing  prevail;  both  raisin  men  and  the  ship- 
pers of  table  grapes  feel  jubilant,  and  see  their  prospects 
brightening  every  day.  So  it  will  be  with  the  wine  interest. 
The  present  depression  is  due  in  a  large  measure  to  the  infer- 
ior quality  of  the  wines  sent  out.  The  wine  of  1884  was  very 
light,  and  it  was  followed  by  the  crop  of  1885,  which  was  to 
a  large  extent,  badly  fermented  ;  but  both  were  bought  and 
rushed  East  in  spring  of  1886,  during  the  time  of  low  freight, 


252  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

and  the  market  glutted  with  inferior  wines,  which  did  not  pay 
the  shipper,  and  disgusted  the  consumer.  The  crop  of  1886 
is  one  of  the  best  in  quality  ever  made  in  the  State.  It  is  a 
wine  that  will  improve  writh  age,  and  make  a  name  for  our 
product.  The  inferior  varieties  are  disappearing,  and  new 
vineyards  of  better  varieties  taking  their  place.  Our  people 
are  learning  fast,  and  we  may  look  for  improvement  in  every  re- 
spect, quality  of  product,  facilities  for  shipping,  extended 
markets  by  new  methods;  and  I  think  1  may  safely  predict  a 
change  for  the  better. 

(Since  the  above  was  written,  the  vintage  has  passed,  and 
prices  ruled  higher  than  anticipated,  from  $15  to  18  per  ton, 
while  the  prospects  are  good  for  a  rapid  sale  of  wine  at  good 
prices.) 


II. 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  1. 

MAKING  WINE. 

It  will  hardly  be  expected  that  I  should  enter  into  the 
practices  and  secrets  of  the  wine  dealer  and  chemist,  in  a 
book  which  only  aims  to  be  the  guide  of  the  cultivator,  and  to 
render  grape  culture  and  wine  making  easy  and  practicable 
for  the  masses.  I  shall  therefore  confine  myself  mostly  to 
the  manufacture  of  light  still  wines,  and  try  to  demonstrate,  in 
a  simple  and  plain  manner,  the  rules  and  practices  which  are 
necessary  for  success  in  this  branch.  I  have  made  but  little 
sweet  wine,  nor  do  I  like  it;  nor  do  I  know  much  of  sparkling 
wines  or  brandy.  But  wine  making  proper,  in  relation  to 
still  wines,  although  a  very  simple  art,  yet  is  governed  by 
certain  rules  which  can  not  be  infringed  with  impunity;  any 
man  with  sound  common  sense  can  become  a  successful  wine 
maker  if  he  observes  them,  and  also  uses  that  common  sense 
to  make  due  allowance  for  variations  in  product,  seasons,  etc. 
I  shall  be  as  concise  and  clear  as  possible;  and  hope  that  any 
one,  by  following  out  my  directions,  will  be  able  to  make  a 
good,  sound,  drinkable  and  saleable  wine,  which  will  be 
healthy  and  palatable  for  him  and  those  who  may  buy  it.  My 
instructions  will  be  calculated  more  to  benefit  the  smaller 
cultivators,  who  work  from  ten  to  fifty  acres  of  vineyard,  than 
those  who  cultivate  from  100  to  thousands  of  acres.  These 
can  generally  afford  to  build  costly  wineries,  and  employ  the 
most  intelligent  labor,  which  will  certainly  be  wise  economy 
for  them.  Still  the  principles  governing  wine  making  remain 
the  same,  and  1  also  hope  to  interest  them,  as  they  may  find 
some  suggestions  which  they  also  can  put  to  practical  use. 

17 


256  GRAPE   CULTURE  AND 


CHAPTER   II. 

THE    CELLAR  ! 

.  Before  making  the  wine,  room  should  be  provided  to  keep  it. 
This,  in  making  a  small  quantity,  need  not  be  an  elaborate 
structure;  in  fact  a  common  house  cellar,  which  can  be  kept 
at  a  temperature  not  exceeding  80  in  summer,  will  answer,  if 
only  a  few  casks  are  to  be  made.  The  main  consideration  is 
always  to  have  the  wine  well  fermented  and  thoroitghly  clear 
the  first  winter:,  if  this  is  the  case,  it  will  keep  almost  any 
where  in  our  temperate  climate  where  we  have.no  severe 
cold  in  winter,  and  the  nights  are  generally  cool  in  summer. 
I  have  seen  as  good  wines  stored  in  simple  holes  in  the 
ground,  as  have  come  out  of  the  finest  cellars.  But  if  you 
want  to  follow  it  as  a  permanent  business,  and  make  from 
10,000  to  30,000  gallons  annually,  with  storage  room  to  keep 
at  least  a  part  of  every  season's  crop,  you  had  better  erect 
good,  substantial  buildings;  whether  of  stone,  brick  or  wood, 
is  immaterial,  and  may  be  governed  by  the  facility  you  have 
of  obtaining  the  material.  Double  walls  of  redwood  are 
about  as  durable  as  stone  or  brick,  at  least  durable  enough  to 
last  a  lifetime  ;  the  main  point  is  that  the  lower  story  at  least, 
in  which  you  aim  to  store  your  wine,  should  keep  a  fairly 
even  temperature,  not  varying  much  from  70°,  65°  is  still 
better.  At  the  Talcoa  Vineyards,  near  Napa,  which  I 
managed  for  over  five  years,  we  had  a  building  with  a  capa- 
city of  60,000  gallons,  which  answered  all  purposes  admirably, 
and  in  which  I  never  had  a  case  of  imperfect  fermentation;  I 
will  describe  it  here,  and  anyone  can  change  the  dimensions 
to  suit  his  wants. 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  257 

The  building  is  two  stories  and  a  half  high.  It  is  built  of 
stone,  forty  by  sixty  feet  ;  the  lower  story  is  almost  entirely 
under  ground  and  twelve  feet  high;  not  arched,  but  with  a 
double  floor  above,  which  is  supported  by  a  double  row  of 
strong  wooden  pillars,  twelve  feet  from  the  wall.  This  gives 
room  for  four  rows  of  two  thousand  gallon  casks,  one  on  each 
side,  and  two  in  the  middle,  with  sufficient  room  between  for 
pumping  and  racking,  handling  of  casks  for  transportation, 
etc.  It  has  two  rows  of  six  casks  on  each  side,  one  row  of 
five  casks  across  at  the  further  end,  and  two  rows  of  five 
casks  each  in  the  middle,  making  a  capacity  of  twenty-seven 
thousand  gallons,  to  which  can  be  easily  added  five  thousand 
more  by  putting  smaller  casks  on  top.  It  is  built  into  the 
hill,  with  a  double  door,  even  with  the  ground  below,  towards 
the  northeast.  The  second  story  has  the  same  dimensions, 
but  is  above  the  ground,  with  its  entrance  from  the  south- 
west, also  double  doors,  and  is  used  as  a  fermenting  room. 
It  is  only  ten  feet  high,  however,  and  contains  two  rows  of 
casks  of  one  thousand  gallons  each  in  the  middle,  with 
smaller  casks  and  fermenting  tanks  on  each  side;  also  with  a 
double  floor,  supported  by  wooden  pillars  above.  The  third 
story,  or  rather  half  story,  contains  the  wine  making  appara- 
tus, stemmer,  crusher  and  two  presses,  a  few  tanks  for  fer- 
menting white  wines  in  smaller  quantities  ;  boxes  and  other 
implements  used  in  wine  making,  and  can  also  be  used  as  a 
shop  in  rainy  days,  to  make  cuttings,  etc.  It  also  has  double 
doors  towards  the  southwest,  and  the  grapes  are  handed  over 
a  platform  from  the  wagon,  from  which  the  approach  is  even 
with  the  floor  of  the  second  story.  Of  course  a  steam  stem- 
mer and  crusher  could  be  put  up  in  the  upper  story,  and  the 
grapes  run  up  by  an  elevator,  if  desired.  All  the  stories  are 
connected  by  holes,  through  which  hose  can  be  run  from  the 
press  or  any  of  the  tanks  or  casks  above,  into  the  casks  below; 
and  racking  from  the  fermenting  vats  in  third  story,  to  the 


258  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

casks  in  the  second,  as  also  from  the  second  story  to  the  first, 
can  be  done  without  pumping  or  handling,  simply  by  gravity; 
also  from  the  presses  to  the  casks  below,  thus  saving  a  great 
deal  of  labor.  A  staircase  connects  second  and  third  floors 
inside.  The  lower  cellar  keeps  a  temperature  of  about  60° 
F.  summer  and  winter,  the  second  story  varies  from  55°  to- 
75U,  mean  temperature  about  70°.  As  stated  before,  I  have 
not  had  a  single  case  of  imperfect  fermentation  there  for  five 
years,  and  therefore  consider  this,  for  our  latitude  and  cli- 
mate, as  near  perfect  as  can  be,  to  make  good,  sound  wines. 
But,  while  it  should  be  the  ultimate  aim  and  object  for 
every  grape  grower  to  make  his  own  wine,  let  me  add  a  word 
of  caution  here  to  those  who,  like  myself,  are  not  blessed  with 
abundant  means.  Do  not  build  your  cellar  and  make  wine 
before  you  are  able  to  pay  for  it.  To  build  a  cellar,  and  get 
casks,  press  and  all  the  necessary  utensils,  generally  costs 
more  than  the  most  minute  calculation  will  show,  and  it  is 
not  safe  to  run  into  debt,  when  you  are  not  fully  sure,  that 
you  can  sell  your  wine  promptly  at  fair  prices  and  thus  pay 
them  off.  I  have  seen  too  many  failures,  resulting  from  ap- 
parently safe  calculations,  to  advise  you  to  burden  yourself 
with  debts,  to  secure  temporary  advantages.  Rather  sell 
your  crop  of  grapes  to  the  next  winery,  as  long  as  you  can 
obtain  paying  prices  ;  and  then,  when  you  have  the  money 
laid  by,  build  a  cellar  and  get  casks  according  to  your  means, 
to  which  you  can  add  as  you  become  able  to  do  so.  You 
can  make  a  few  casks  for  your  own  use,  and  store  them  in  a 
house  cellar,  or  shed  even,  in  our  temperate  climate  ;  but  do 
not  speculate  rashly,  and  involve  yourself  beyond  your  depth, 
on  seemingly  safe  calculations  and  inviting  probabilities. 
Your  crop  may  fall  below  your  estimation,  or  you  may  not 
find  ready  sale  for  your  wine  at  prices  that  will  pay  ;  and  the 
result  of  a  good  many  such  ventures  has  been,  that  the  banks 
owned  the  cellars  and  the  vineyards  and  homesteads  also,  be- 


WINE-MAKING   IN   CALIFORNIA.  259 

fore  the  matter  was  finally  arranged.  Go  slow,  labor  patient- 
ly and  persistently  ;  and  you  will  not  fail  to  reap  your  reward; 
even  if  it  takes  a  few  years  longer  ;  your  mind  will  not  be 
burdened  by  the  consciousness  of  debts,  and  your  work  will 
thrive  and  progress  better,  as  long  as  you  are  free  from  embar- 
rassment of  that  kind. 


CHAPTER  III. 

WINE    MAKING    APPARATUS. 

Casks.  After  the  cellar  is  built,  the  next  thing  in  order 
will  be  to  obtain  the  necessary  casks.  We  want  to  be  ready 
in  time  for  the  vintage,  so  that  everything  can  run  smoothly 
and  without  hinderance  then.  Fortunately  we  have  the 
months  of  July  and  August  here,  during  which  there  is  not 
much  to  do  in  the  vineyard,  and  they  can  mostly  be  devoted 
to  work  of  this  kind.  Casks  of  all  dimensions  are  now  made 
in  the  State  from  well  seasoned  Eastern  oak  wood,  and  these 
will  be  the  best  for  permanent  use.  Large  casks  save  room, 
and  are  the  most  economical  and  lasting;  though  smaller 
casks  or  puncheons  will  ferment  quicker  and  more  thoroughly. 
It  is  evident  that  a  thousand  gallon  cask  is  filled  and  racked 
with  less  time  and  less  labor,  than  six  puncheons  of  160  gal- 
lons each,  while  it  also  takes  less  room.  Therefore  it  will  be 
advisable  to  have  large  casks  for  the  larger  quantities,  your 
leading  varieties  ;  and  have  smaller  ones  for  your  choicer  kind 
and  smaller  quantities.  Large  casks  cost  now  from  7  to  10 
•cents  per  gallon,  while  common  puncheons  cost  about  6^ 
cts.  The  former  are  provided  with  doors  or  rnanheads,  to 


260  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

facilitate  washing  and  cleaning,  so  that  a  man  can  slip  into 
them,  and  brush  and  rinse  them  from  the  inside.  Oblong 
casks  save  room,  and  are  also  easier  cleaned  than  round. 
But  we  also  want  frames  to  lay  our  casks  upon.  These  can 
be  made  from  stout  scantlings  4-6  inch,  the  first  to  be  laid. 
2^/2,  feet  from  the  wall,  the  second  2^  feet  apart  from  it,  and 
supported  by  either  cross  pieces  of  timber,  or  better  still,  pil- 
lars of  stone  every  six  feet.  The  inside  scantling  should  be 
two  inches  lower  than  the  one  next  to  the  wall,  so  as  to  give 
the  cask  a  slight  inclination  forward.  This  will  facilitate 
racking  and  cleaning.  If  there  is  a  concrete  or  cemented 
floor  in  the  cellar,  it  will  also  be  cleanlier  and  better. 

On  these  scantlings  we  lay  our  casks,  giving  room  to  the 
first  one  sufficient  for  a  man  to  pass  between  the  wall  and 
cask.  There  should  also  be  room  enough  behind  the  casks, 
to  allow  frequent  inspection,  lifting  in  racking,  etc.  There 
also  should  be  a  space  of  six  inches  between  the  casks,  so  that 
each  one  can  be  handled  and  moved  independently  from  the 
other.  For  smaller  casks,  the  layers  of  scantling  can  of 
course  be  nearer  to  each  other.  But  all  should  be  elevated 
about  eighteen  inches  from  the  ground  floor,  to  admit  of  the 
free  use  of  utensils  in  racking.  Before  the  casks  are  placed, 
especially  if  new,  they  should  be  made  wine  green,  as  the  gen- 
eral term  is,  that  is  the  woody  taste  contained  in  the  oak, 
should  be  drawn  out.  Soaking  with  cold  water,  and  steaming 
afterwards,  is  generally  sufficient  in  smaller  ones;  but  in  large, 
heavy  casks,  it  is  well  to  make  some  fresh  lime  water  after 
rinsing  with  cold  water,  by  adding  two  pounds  of  lime  to  four 
gallons  of  water;  throwing  the  lime  in  first,  then  pouring  in 
the  water,  and  by  rolling  and  shaking,  bring  it  into  contact 
with  every  part  of  the  cask.  This  is  about  the  proportion  for 
a  thousand  gallon  cask.  Then  wash  clean,  emptying  out  all 
the  lime  water,  and  the  cask  will  be  ready  for  use.  Sal  Soda, 
is  also  used  for  the  same  purpose,  and  is  equally  good. 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  261 

Tanks.  For  fermenting,  we  want  tanks,  made  from  red- 
wood, which  can  also  be  used  for  storing  wine  at  an  emergency. 
\v\  fact,  many  wineries  in  the  State  use  them  altogether,  as 
their  cost  per  gallon  is  much  less,  only  about  3*^  cts.  But 
they  are  more  apt  to  leak  than  oak  casks,  and  the  wastage  will 
soon  amount  to  about  the  same,  or  run  beyond  it.  Besides 
wine  is  apt  to  acquire  a  peculiar  taste  from  them,  which  is  not 
desirable.  For  fermenting,  they  should  be  rather  wide  and 
low,  than  high  and  narrow,  as  it  affords  better  facilities  for 
stirring,  of  which  I  shall  treat  further  on,  and  the  mash  does 
not  become  so  hot.  About  three  and  one-half  or  four  feet 
high,  by  five  feet  wide,  is  a  convenient  size.  They  should  be 
of  one  and  one-half  inch  lumber,  smooth  and  without  knot, 
and  also  have  a  top  with  a  manhole,  which  can  be  put  in 
.when  desired.  These  are  placed  upright,  on  a  similar  frame 
of  scantlings  as  the  casks,  in  the  fermenting  room. 

Stemmer.     This  is  a  necessary  implement,  and  consists  of  a 
strong  wire  screen,  (Fig.  26)  which  can  also  however  be  made 


FIG.  2G. 
of  wood.      Here  mostly  strong  galvanized  wire  is  used,  a  box 


202  GRAPE   CULTURE   AND 

of  grapes  is  poured  in,  and  rubbed  back  and  forth,  by  a  pecu- 
liar swinging  motion  of  the  two  men  who  work  it;  the  berries 
are  rubbed  off  and  fall  into  the  frame  below,  from  which  they, 
pass  into  the  crusher;  the  stems  remain,  and  are  emptied  out 
from  time  to  time. 

The  Crusher.  As  generally  employed,'  consists  of  two 
wooden  rollers,  either  plain  or  grooved,  and  about  eight  inches 
diameter,  so  geared  with  cog  wheels  that  they  will  run  against 
each  other,  drawing  the  crushed  grapes  from  the  hopper  above, 
as  shown  in  Fig,  27.  They  are  turned  by  a  crank,  and  set 
above  a  wooden  trough,  into  which  the 
crushed  berries  fall,  and  are  emptied 
into  the  press  or  fermenting  vat.  The 
rollers  are  so  adjusted  with  screws,  that 
they  can  be  set  so  the  skin  of  the  ber- 
ries is  broken,  but  not  the  seeds;  as 
they  impart  a  disagreeable  taste  to  the 
FIG.  27-  vvine- 

The  Press.  This  can  be  made  on  the  old-fashioned  lever 
plan,  and  although  rather  inconvenient  in  handling,  it  is 
really  a  good  press,  as  it  acts  continuously.  For  this  purpose 
a  hole  is  morticed  into  a  tree,  or  if  it  is  strong  enough,  the 
end  of  the  lever  may  be  fastened  to  the  cellar.  A  long  beam, 
say  twenty  feet,  is  then  chosen  for  the  lever,  which  by  a 
strong  bolt  is  fastened  in  the  hole,  so  that  it  can  move  up  and 
down  freely.  A  bottom  for  the  press  is  then  made  close  to 
the  end  of  the  lever,  where  it  is  fastened  to  the  tree;  constructed 
of  strong  two-inch  planed  lumber,  grooved  so  as  to  give  the 
juice  a  chance  10  run  off,  and  furnished  with  a  two-inch  rim, 
to  keep  the  juice  from  running  over.  One  side  is  slightly 
declined,  and  a  spout  of  tin  of  say  two  inches  wide,  fastened 
to  a  hole  in  the  rim,  wher^  the  juice  can  run  out,  into  a  tub. 
We  now  make  a  box,  say  3%  feet  square,  of  strong  two-inch 


\\-IXE-MAKIXCr    IN   CALIFORNIA.  263 

timber,  and  perforated  with  half  inch  holes  for  the  juice  to  run 
out.  This  box  can  be  of  any  desired  height,  or  it  can  be 
made  in  sections,  and  enclosed  with  a  frame  to  give  it  more 
strength.  Three  to  four  feet  is  about  the  usual  height.  A 
strong  board,  also  perforated,  to  fit  into  the  box  as  a  follower, 
completes  the  arrangement.  When  the  box  is  filled  with  the 
crushed  grapes,  the  follower  is  put  on,  some  cross  beams  if 
necessary;  and  the  lever,  which  can  be  worked  up  and  down 
at  the  other  end  with  a  rope  and  pully.  If  not  found  heavy 
enough,  it  can  be  weighted  with  stone,  and  presses  all  the 
time.  This  is  very  simple,  and  any  ordinary  mechanic  or 
"  handy  man  "  can  make  it. 

There  are  of  course,  many  other  presses.  One  of  the  best, 
of  which  the  smallest  size  is  sufficient  to  work  up  from  10  to 
20,000  gallons,  is  the  California  Wine  Press,  which  can  be  had 
at  Woodin  &  Little,  San  Francisco. 

Smaller  Implements.  We  want  a  good  many  smaller 
implements,  among  which  are  tubs,  to  be  used  for  the  press 
to  receive  the  juice;  faucets  of  brass  with  threads  cut  on  the 
end  to  attach  hose;  hose  to  conduct  the  must  from  the  press 
to  the  casks,  which  should  be  inch  and  a  half  diameter  out- 
side measure;  pails  and  cans,  the  last  made  of  strong  tin,  to 
hold  about  three  gallons,  narrower  at  top  than  bottom,  and 
with  a  rim  a  foot  below;  and  a  strong  wooden  funnell,  Fig.  29, 

oblong,  with  a  copper  pipe  in 
the  bottom  at  the  narrowest 
end,  and  two  shprt  wooden 
legs,  so  that  it  will  set  firmly 
on  the  cask,  with  a  capacity  of 
four  to  five  gallons.  The  sac- 
harometer  and  testing  tube 
^have  been  already  referred  to, 
and  are  indispensable  to  work 
FIG.  29. 


GRAPE   CULTURE    AND 


understand! ngly.     The  acidimeter,   Fig.   30,  although  useful 

at  times,  is  seldom 
necessary  here,  as 
our  musts,  when  they 
have  from  22  to  26 
Balling,  have  no  ex- 
cess of  acids,  and 
they  should  not  be 
lighter  to  make  good 
wine.  Besides,  it  is 
more  difficult  to  use 
the  acidimeter  prop- 
erly, as  it  can  only 
show  the  acids  cor- 
rectly when  fermen- 
t  at  ion  has  drawn 
.them  from  the  skins 
'and  flesh,  therefore 
in  i  n  e  x  p  erienced 
\hands  generally  does 
more  harm  than 
good.  We  also  want 
a  strong  pestle  or  board,  say  nine  inches  in  diameter,  with  a 
five  foot  handle  attached,  to  stir  the  pomace  in  the  ferment- 
ing vat. 

This,  of  course,  refers  only  to  small  establishments,  who 
want  to  do  the  work  by  hand.  Those  who  intend  to  work 
on  a  larger  scale,  by  steam  or  water  power,  will  do  best  to  get 
the  combined  stemmer  and  crusher,  as  wA\  as  other  machin- 
ery, from  L.  Heald,  Crockett,  Contra  Costa  Co.,  who  makes 
a  specialty  of  wine  making  machinery,  presses,  etc.,  and 
whose  machinery  is  used  by  nearly  all  the  large  wineries  in 
the  State.  If  they  will  state  their  wants  and  the  extent  of 
their  operations,  he  will  furnish  just  what  they  want. 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  265 


CHAPTER  IV. 

~  MAKING  DRY  WINES. 

As  I  have  already  given  directions  for  picking  the  grapes, 
and  the  proper  time  and  manner  when  to  do  so,  we  are  now 
ready  to  make  our  wine,  as  soon  as  our  apparatus  is  all  clean 
and  in  working  order.  Dry  wines  may  be  divided  inta 
three  classes,  all  requiring  different  treatment,  and  I  shall 
consider  them  in  succession. 

(a)  WHITE  WINES    PROPER. 

This  comprises  all  wines  made  from  grapes  which  contain 
none  or  very  little  coloring  matter,  in  short,  all  wines  re- 
sembling Hocks  or  Sauternes,  the  two  best  known  types  of 
German  and  French  white  wines.  Let  us  define  these  two 
classes  a  little  closer. 

Hocks  we  call  the  wines  from  the  Rhine,  the  Moselle,  the 
Palatinate,  and  other  German  and  Austrian  provinces,  which 
are  characterized  by  their  light  yellow  or  greenish  color, 
sprightliness  and  agreeable  acidity,  as  well  as  their  agreeable 
bouquet.  The  majority  of  them  are  light  rather  than  heavy, 
and  it  is  considered  a  fair  proportion  of  alcohol  if  they  con- 
tain eight  per  cent.  They  are  preeminently  the  wines  to 
"make  glad  the  heart  of  man/5  the  main  ingredients  of  the 
famed  "Maitrank,"  which  have  furnished  the  inspiration  for 
the  innumerable  songs  in  their  praise  for  which  the  "Vater- 
land"  is  famous,  and  which  have  given  the  Rhine  its  fame  as 
the  most  poetic  and  romantic  stream  on  earth. 

Sauternes  are  generally  fuller,  softer,  and  smoother  than 
Hocks,  and  many  of  them  are  slightly  sweet.  The  far-famed 
Chateau  Yquem  is  the  representative  of  that  class,  the  noblest 


266  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

white  wine  which  France  produces.  But  while  France  makes 
some  very  choice  white  wines,  her  fame  was  mostly  gained 
by  her  red  wines  and  clarets.  We  may  therefore  safely  assert 
that  the  French  are  preeminently  a  claret  producing  and  con- 
suming nation,  and  the  Germans  the  consumers  of  white 
wines. 

Of  the  Hock  type  we  have  the  Riesling  family,  including 
Chauche  Gris,  Green  Hungarian,  Traminer,  White  Elben, 
Yellow  Mosler,  and  for  a  lighter  type  of  Moselle  wines,  the 
Gutedel  and  Burger. 

Of  the  Sauterne  type,  including  the  hermitage  wines,  Mar- 
sanne,  Roussanne.  Sauvignon  Blanc,  Semillion,  Muscadelle  de 
Bordelais,  Pedro  Ximenes,  (generally  called  Sauvignon  Vert). 

The  Clairette  Blanche,  although  French,  and  the  Herbe- 
mont,  American,  I  should  class  with  the  Hock  varieties,  on 
account  of  their  sprightliness,  pleasant  acidity  and  bouquet. 

For  wines  developing  a  sherry  type  naturally,  Palomino  and 
Sultana.  It  will  naturally  be  inferred  that  only  such  varieties 
should  be  blended  or  mixed  together  as  belong  to  each  type. 

When  our  grapes  are  stemmed  and  crushed,  they  should 
either  be  pressed  at  once,  if  the  light,  greenish  color  now  in 
vogue  is  desired,  and  a  very  smooth  delicate  wine  ;  or  if  a 
wine  of  golden  yellow  color  is  the  preference,  they  may  be  put 
into  the  fermenting  vat,  and  allowed  to  remain  over  night, 
say  twelve  hours,  on  the  skins.  This  will  give  the  wine  a 
deeper  color  and  more  flavor  and  character,  though  not  so 
smooth  and  agreeable  ;  I  know  that  I  come  into  conflict  here 
with  Mr.  Arpad  Haraszthy,  who  is  generally  considered  au- 
thority, and  discourses  on  fermentation  at  every  meeting.  He 
advises  to  leave  them  in  the  fermenting  vat  for  three  or  four 
days;  in  short,  treat  white  wines  about  as  red  wines  should  be 
treated.  I  do  not  pretend  to  be  an  authority,  but  I  also  do 
not  acknowledge  any  ;  and  my  practice  has  taught  me  that 
white  wines,  thus  treated,  loose  all  that  delicacy,  smoothness 


WINE-MAKING   IN    CALIFORNIA.  267 

and  sprightliness  which  to  me  constitute  their  chief  merit,  and 
become  rough  and  acid.  But  my  readers  can  easily  satisfy 
themselves,  by  trying  both  ;  than  follow  the  method  which 
suits  their  taste  best,  and  gives  them  the  most  saleable  wine. 
The  must  can  be  run  into  the  casks  from  the  press  at  once. 
Of  course  these  should  be  "wine  green"  beforehand  ;  if  new, 
they  should  be  made  so  as  indicated  before;  if  old,  and  they 
have  contained  wine  before,  they  should  be  made  perfectly 
clean  and  sweet  by  thorough  washing.  The  rinsing  chain, 
(Fig.  31)  is  a  good  implement  for  loosening  any  impurities, 
and  the  smell  will  indicate  whether  they  are 
clean  and  sweet.  If  at  all  mouldy  they  should 
be  rinsed  with  lime  water  or  sal  soda,  and  if 
they  lay  empty  for  several  days,  they  should  be 
sulphured  as  soon  as  dry,  and  the  bung  drove 
FIG.  31.  m  tight-  ^  will  be  found  very  useful  to  burn 
some  good  pure  grape  brandy  in  them,  which  will  fumigate 
them  thoroughly.  Take  about  a  quart  to  a  thousand  gallon 
cask,  pour  it  in  at  the  bung,  and  ignite  by  dropping  a  burning 
match  into  the  brandy  from  above.  As  soon  as  the  brandy 
is  burning  well,  lay  a  cloth  over  the  bung;  but  do  not  drive 
in  the  bung  until  it  is  all  burned,  as  it  may  burst  or  injure  the 
cask.  This  will  penetrate  the  wood  deep  enough  to  benefit 
the  must,  and  is  much  better  than  heavy  sulphuring.  If  you 
do  sulphur,  rinse  the  cask  before  filling,  to  take  out  the  smell 
and  taste,  which  the  must  easily  acquires,  and  which  is  also 
deleterious  to  active  fermentation.  Fresh  brandy  or  whiskey 
casks  may  be  used  for  fermenting  wines,  provided  there  are 
no  other  flavorings  used  in  the  liquor,  such  as  gin,  chervil, 
anisette,  etc.  But  they  will  not  do  for  fermented  wines,  or 
for  racking.  The  quantity  of  brandy  to  be  used  will  of  course 
correspond  to  the  size  of  the  cask.  Fill  your  casks  with  the 
must  to  within  about  eight  inches  of  the  top,  to  prevent  its1 
running  over,  and  divide  the  pressing  which  runs  last,  equally 


268  GRAPE  CUiyrUKE   AND 

among  them,  if  you  have  several  to  fill,  if  you  want  to  make 
a  uniform  wine.  Some  prefer  to  have  the  first  run  by  itself, 
and  fill  the  pressed  wine  into  a  separate  cask.  The  first  will 
of  course  make  the  most  delicate  wine,  while  the  last  will  be 
more  harsh  and  rough,  from  the  tannin  and  acid  extracted 
from  the  skins  and  seeds.  But  this  tannin  is  generally  needed 
to  clear  the  wine  and  make  it  durable,  and  if  pressed  as  soon 
as  indicated,  there  will  not  be  an  excess  of  it.  The  bunghole 
may  then  be  covered  by  a  fresh  grape  leaf,  to  keep  insects  or 
dust  from  entering,  and  the  bung,  or  a  small  sack  with  clean 
sand  laid  on,  to  keep  it  there  until  the  wine  has  become  quiet. 
To  fill  up,  some  must  of  the  same  kind  should  be  filled  into  a 
smaller  cask  ;  and  when  violent  fermentation  is  over,  say  in 
five  or  six  days,  they  can  be  filled  up  to  the  bunghole.  As 
soon  as  fermentation  is  over,  which  you  can  tell  by  holding 
your  ear  above  the  bunghole,  by  the  absence  of  the  hissing 
and  seething  noise  wrhich  accompanies  fermentation,  the  bung 
can  be  put  in,  at  first  lightly,  and  after  a  few  days,  it  can  be 
drove  in  tight. 

A  great  improvement  on  the  solid  bungs  for  the  manage- 
ment of  young  wines  is  the  perforated  bung.  For  this,  good 
spruce,  maple  or  ash  bungs  are  used,  made  about  four  inches 
long,  tapering  gradually.  A  hole  with  a  half  inch  or  three- 
eighths  augur  is  then  bored  through  them  the  whole  length, 
and  filled  with  cotton  steeped  in  salicylic  acid,  pressed  to- 
gether solidly.  This  gives  enough  vent  to  the  young  wine, 
yet  will  act  as  a  filter  to  the  air  when  the  wine  becomes  quiet 
and  fermentation  ceases.  They  can  also  be  used  for  casks 
and  barrels  that  are  kept  "on  tap"  as  the  phrase  is,  for  a  short 
time;  and  though  I  do  not  advise  their  use  for  an  unlimited 
length  of  time,  yet  they  are  a  better  preservative  than  solid 
bungs,  which  can  hardly  be  closed  enough  to  prevent  all  access 
of  air.  In  this  case  the  air  is  freed  from  all  impurities,  and 
will  not  vitiate  the  wine.  To  young  wines,  it  prevents  the  ac- 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  269 

cess  of  impure  air,  yet  gives  them  sufficient  vent  to  finish  fer- 
mentation completely. 

The  treatment  of  all  these  varieties  is  about  the  same  in 
the  first  stages  of  their  development,  if  they  are  to  be  dry, 
light  wines.  The  German  Muscateller  or  Frontignan  can 
also  be  made  into  a  dry  wine  in  the  same  way,  but  it  is  best  to 
press  it  immediately  in  all  cases,  as  the  flavor  of  the  grape  is 
naturally  .strong,  and  will  be  developed  to  an  unpleasant 
degree  by  fermentation  on  the  skins. 

(b.)     MAKING    WHITE    WINES    FROM    BLACK    GRAPES. 

This  is  often  advisable,  and  especially  now,  when  white 
wines  sell  so  much  more  rapidly,  and  at  higher  prices  than 
reds.  We  have  some  red  varieties  however,  the  so-called 
<c  coloring  grapes,"  which  have  red  juice,  and  which  therefore 
cannot  be  used  for  white  wine.  These  are  the  Lenoir, 
Teinturier,  Gamay  Teinturier,  Pied  de  Perdrix,  Petit  Bous- 
chet,  and  perhaps  a  few  others.  In  fact,  anything  of  which 
the  juice  runs  red,  when  you  squeeze  a  berry  between  you*1 
fingers,  cannot  be  used  for  white  wine.  But  when  a  vintner 
has  Mission  and  Malvasia  yet,  he  certainly  ought  to  make  as 
much  white  wine  from  them  as  he  can,  and  either  throw  away 
the  pomace  or  use  it  for  distillation  or  port.  They  make  a 
fair  white  wine,  but  the  dry  red  wine  made  from  them, 
deteriorates  with  age,  and  never  is  very  good.  But  there  are 
many  red  wine  grapes,  which  have  all  the  color  in  the  skins, 
and  which,  when  pressed  immediately  and  lightly,  will  make 
a  nice  white  wine  from  the  first  run,  when  the  mark  or 
pomace,  which  of  course  contains  a  good  deal  of  juice  yet, 
and  all  the  coloring  matter  and  tannin,  can  be  put  into  the 
fermenting  vat,  either  with  other  red  grapes,  or  fermented 
alone.  Of  course,  the  first  run  is  the  best  juice,  and  will 
make  the  smoothest  wine  ;  but  this  is  not  generally  sought 
for  in  clarets;  in  fact,  the  trade  has  so  far  demanded  deep 
color,  astringency  and  flavor,  all  of  which  would  be  increased 


270  GRAPE   CULTURE   AND 

by  taking  off  the  first  run   immediately  after  crushing  ;  and 
fermenting  the'remainder  for  five  or  six  days. 

Among  the  grapes  which  make  choice  white  wines  if  pressed 
lightly  are  Chauche  Noir,  Meunier  and  Carignane  ;  the  Zin- 
fandel,  Blaue  Elben,  Mataro,  Beclan,  Grosse  Blaue, 
Mondeuse  and  Petit  Syrah  can  all  be  utilized  in  this  way,  and 
make  very  nice  wine.  The  Herbemont  should  also  be  treated 
in  this  way,  as  well  as  the  Rulander  and  they  make  delightful 
white  wine.  Press  very  light,  and  quit  pressing  as  soon  as 
the  juice  assumes  a  red  tinge,  using  the  remainder  for  red 
wine.  Treat  the  "  first  run  "  just  as  the  white  wine  proper, 
and  you  can  thus  increase  the  quantity  of  white  wine,  if  it 
should  be  desirable.  If  you  have  fresh  pomace  at  same  time, 
of  Marsanne,  Riesling  or  any  of  the  choice  Sauterne  or  Hock 
varieties,  and  will  ferment  your  must  from  red  grapes  on  them 
for  a  single  night,  you  will  find  that  you  can  give  it  the  char- 
acter of  that  special  variety,  and  thus  utilize  your  product 
much  better.  I  have  thus  fermented  white  Malvasia  on 
Marsanne  and  Pedro  Ximehes  pomace,  which  would  pass  for 
very  fair  Hermitage,  although  of  course,  it  could  not  be 
called  a  "  grand  vin."  There  is  a  wide  field  of  useful  experi- 
ment open  for  us  in  this  direction,  and  it  certainly  is  legiti- 
mate blending,  the  highest  art  in  viticulture.  It  seems  to 
me  there  is  a  more  paying  field  in  that  direction  than  to  try 
to  improve  and  ameliorate  our  clarets  by  cutting  them  with 
light  white  wines,  to  make  them  acceptable  to  the  public 
taste. 

(c)    RED    WINES. 

In  making  red  wine,  we  have  of  course  a  different  object  in 
view.  In  white  wines,  we  desire  sprightliness,  delicacy, 
smoothness  and. bouquet;  in  red  wines,  we  want  good  color, 
and  astringency  mainly,  and  in  this  State,  even  the  fine  bou- 
quet,.which  ougbt  to  characterize  good  red,  as  well  as  white 
wine,  has  often  been  sacrificed  to  attain  the  two  first,  and  the 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  271 

mellowness  which  a  good  red  wine  ought  also  to  have,  is  sel- 
dom found.  While  I  fully  recognize  the  importance  of  good 
color  and  astringency  in  red  wines,  I  hope  to  show  my  readers 
how  they  can  make  them  with  a  sufficiency  of  these,  and  also 
have  them  of  good  bouquet  and  mellow.  The  general  practice 
in  this  State  has  been  formerly,  to  crush  the  grapes,  put  them 
into  six  feet  high  fermenting  tanks,  and  then  let  them  work 
out  their  own  salvation.  I  have  often  been  in  wineries  that 
looked  more  like  slaughter  houses,  with  the  purple  juice  bub- 
bling over  the  top,  a  crusfof  a  foot  thick  had  formed  on  top, 
which  had  become  dry  and  mouldy,  was  swarming  with  vine- 
gar flies,  and  in  many  cases,  maggots  were  crawling  around 
lively.  When  the  fermentation  was  over,  the  whole  mass  was 
often  left  for  a  week  yet,  as  the  manipulator  thought  to  gain  for 
it  color  and  tannin,  and  become  more  saleable  thereby.  That 
under  such  treatment  decomposition  and  acidification  had 
often  set  in,  can  hardly  surprise  any  one.  Yet  these  were 
often,  and  even  in  the  majority  of  cases,  so  called  "  old  skill- 
ful wine  makers "  from  France  or  Italy,  who  felt  insulted  if 
their  practice,  which  their  fathers  and  grandfathers  had  fol- 
lowed before  them,  was  not  considered  perfect.  If  told  that 
five  days  of  thorough  fermentation  would  extract  all  the  color 
and  tannin,  and  make  a  deeper  colored  and  more  lively  wine 
than  theirs,  they  would  not  believe  it,  had  it  been  demonstrat- 
ed before  their  eves.  I  know  of  large  establishments,  even 
now,  which  make  from  200,000  to  half  a  million  of  gallons  of 
Claret  every  year,  who  keep  their  fermenting  rooms  at  such  a 
temperature  at  night,  that  suffocated  rats  are  strewn  about  the 
floor  in  the  morning.  And  yet  the  wine  made  under  such 
conditions  is  sent  all  over  the  Country  as  "  California  Claret/* 
Is  it  a  wonder  that  it  has  a  bad  name  and  reputation  ? 

Most  of  the  clarets  are  now  fermented  under  so  called 
'  'false"  or  perforated  tops;  that  is,  after  the  crushed  grapes  are 
put  in,  a  perforated  top  which  fits  on  a  rim  or  cleats  nailed  to 

18 


272  GRAPE   CULTURE   AND 

the  inside  of  the  tank,  is  put  over  them,  so  that  the  juice 
comes  through  the  holes  and  stands  above  the  mash  and  the 
top  fastened  there.  This  is  better  than  the  first  method,  but 
yet  admits  of  great  improvement.  Naturally,  fermentation 
commences  above,  where  the  fluid  comes  into  contact  with 
the  air,  slowly  progresses  downward,  so  that  when  the  top  has 
already  passed  through  fermentation,  and  become  bitter,  it  is 
still  sweet  below;  and  unless  the  lower  fluid  is  drawn  off  and 
poured  on  above,  there  is  a  great  difference  between  the  top 
and  bottom  in  its  development,  and  it  is  very  difficult  to  tell 
when  it  is  ready  for  pressing. 

My  method,  by  which  I  have  always  made  good  clarets, 
and  had  them  ready  for  the  press  within  five  or  six  days,  is 
as  follows  : 

After  the  grapes  are  crushed,  I  fill  them  into  the  ferment- 
ing vat.  I  prefer  rather  shallow  and  wide  to  the  deep  and 
narrow  ones  which  have  been  in  use  generally,  say  four  feet 
high  by  five  feet  wide.  A  small  screen  of  wire  should  be 
fastened  over  the  faucet  hole  to  keep  out  the  skins  and  stems 
if  any  are  left,  and  to  let  the  liquid  run  off  clear.  Then 
fill  your  tanks  to  about  a  foot  from  the  top,  so  that  they  will 
not  run  over  in  fermenting,  and  stir  the  mass  at  least  three 
times  a  day  while  fermenting,  with  a  wooden  pestle  made  (or 
the  purpose,  taking  care  that  the  whole  mass  is  well  mixed, 
and  the  skins  rising  to  the  surface  are  submerged  again,  so  that 
no  acetification  can  set  in.  This  is  a  process  of  aerating,  by 
which  the  skins  which  have  been  exposed  to  the  air  are 
again  submerged  and  keep  up  a  lively  fermentation  ;  but  if 
the  temperature  of  the  fermenting  room  does  not  rise  above 
75  or  80°,  as  it  ought  not  to  do,  the  temperature  of  the 
mash  will  not  rise  above  90°.  It  will  be  well,  should  fer- 
mentation get  violent  above,  to  test  the  liquid  below,  at  the 
bottom  of  the  vat,  and  if  that  should  be  much  below  the 
temperature  at  top,  to  draw  out  some  by  the  faucet  below, 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  273 

and  pour  it  on  top.  This  will  equalize  and  aerate  the  whole, 
and  within  five  days  we  generally  find  that  all  the  sweetness 
has  disappeared.  The  test  should  be  taken  from  the  bottom 
of  the  vat,  and  if  that  does  not  show  any  sweetness  we  can 
depend  upon  the  whole  being  ready  for  the  press.  It  is  a 
mistaken  idea  to  think  that  the  must  will  gain  any  color  or 
tannin  after  it  has  become  cool  and  quiet,  for  the  color  will 
remain  fixed  better  after  the  cooking  process  (and  fermenta- 
tion is  nothing  else)  has  subsided.  If  the  wine  (and  it  has 
gone  into  the  vinous  state  as  soon  as  fermentation  has  done 
its  work)  remains  any  longer  on  the  skins,  it  simply  loses 
all  the  freshness,  and  fruity  flavor  which  are  so  necessary;  in 
fact  constitute  its  chief  value  to  the  buyer. 

To  comprehend  this,  we  only  need  to  look  a  little  closer 
at  the  nature  of  fermentation,  and  what  it  will  accomplish. 
During  the  process,  carbonic  acid  gas  escapes  all  the  time, 
rising  in  bubbles  to  the  surface,  and  if  the  mass  is  stirred  and 
kept  submerged,  no  acetification  can  take  place.  But  as 
soon  as  it  has  become  quiet  this  ceases;  the  surface  is  still, 
no  carbonic  gas  escapes,  and  the  exposure  to  the  air  is  bound 
to  affect  the  young  wine  to  its  positive  injury.  To  test  this, 
only  leave  it  quiet  for  one  or  two  days,  and  you  will  see 
mould  appear  on  its  surface,  that  sure  sign  of  putrefaction 
and  decomposition.  It  robs  the  young  wine  of  all  that  liveli- 
ness and  fine  aromatic  properties  it  ought  to  possess,  and 
which  we  find  developed  in  our  white  wines  to  a  much 
higher  degree  than  in  the  red,  just  because  it  is  not  exposed 
to  this  putrefaction  process.  Yet  we  find  old  wine  makers 
advocating  the  practice  of  leaving  the  wine  on  the  skins  long 
after  fermentation  has  ceased,  to  gain  color  and  tannin,  as 
they  suppose;  while  it  accomplishes  just  the  contrary;  for  the 
exposure  to  the  air  after  fermentation  has  the  tendency  to  de- 
crease the.  color.  And  even  if  this  were  not  the  case,  I 
would  rather  have  a  wine  with  a  trifle  less  color,  and  more 


274  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

life  and  bouquet,  than  vice  versa.  The  best  and  choicest 
French  and  European  clarets  are  not  noted  for  their  depth  of 
color  especially,  but  for  their  fine  bouquet.  This  gives  them 
their  value,  and  it  is  this  in  which  the  Italians,  with  their 
naturally  excellent  product,  are  so  far  behind  the  French. 
They  are,  perhaps,  the  most  slovenly  wine  makers  on  the 
face  of  the  earth,  and  today  prefer  the  Mission  and  Malvasia, 
with  their  deep  color  and  roughness,  to  the  choicest  red  wine 
grapes.  Anything  that  will  "  scratch  the  throat,"  which  is 
rough  and  acid  is  good  for  them,  and  their  wineries,  where 
everybody  makes  his  own  wine,  are  enough  to  shock  the  sen- 
sibilities of  any  common  man  or  woman,  and  create  a  pre- 
judice against  the  use  of  wine.  Let  me  not  be  understood, 
however,  as  if  there  were  not  good  and  skillful  wine  makers 
among  them.  But  they  are  like  angels  visits,  "few  and  far 
between,"  and  deserve  all  the  more  credit  as  honorable  ex- 
ceptions to  the  rule. 

Italy,  as  recently  illustrated  by  Dr.  Springmuchl,  possesses 
some  of  the  choicest  material  in  the  world,  yet  it  is  generally 
spoilt  for  want  of  proper  management,  and  needs  the  manip- 
ulation of  the  French,  the  great  wine  doctors  par  excellence, 
to  make  it  drinkable,  and  to  introduce  it  to  the  world  as 
choice  Bordeaux  claret. 

The  method  above  given  is  what  the  French  call  making 
claret  with  f  outage  or  frequent  stirring,  and,  if  closely  watched, 
will  I  think  produce  our  choicest  clarets  and  Burgundies,  as 
it  will  preserve  all  their  freshness,  and  yet  extract  all  the  color 
and  tannin  as  well  as  the  aroma.  That  a  claret  or  Burgundy 
can  never  be  as  delicate  as  a  fine  white  wine  will  be  evident 
from  the  above.  I  have  generally  made  some  Zinfandel  for 
my  own  drinking,  which  I  prefer  to  the  darker  colored  and 
rougher  wines,  and  which  has  all  that  fine  raspberry  flavor 
so  characteristic  to  the  grape.  To  make  this  I  simply  draw 
some  must  from  the  bottom  of  the  vat,  after  it  has  fermented 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  275 

about  thirty-six  hours,  and  fill  it  into  a  separate  cask.  This 
is  much  smoother,  of  a  lighter  color,  being  what  we  call  a 
dark  Schiller  wine,  and  to  my  notion  far  surpasses  all  the 
deep  colored  wines  which  I  get  from  the  same  tank  after 
fermenting  three  days  longer.  But  it  would  be  no  wine  for 
the  merchant,  who  generally  buys  pale  clarets  enough,  and 
needs  deeper  colored  wines  to  give  them  color  and  astringency. 
Besides,  the  taste  which  requires  red  wines  seeks  a  different 
product.  It  wants  color  and  astringency,  and  we  may  as 
well  gratify  it,  but  we  ought  not  to  do  so  at  the  sacrifice  of 
all  the  finesse  and  flavor  of  which  red  wines  are  capable.  If 
we  attain  a  happy  medium,  giving  them  deep  color,  astrin- 
gency, and  a  pleasant  acidity,  they  will  surely  not  object  to  a 
good  share  of  fine  bouquet. 

The  record  of  experiments  by  Prof.  Hilgard  at  Berkeley, 
given  below,  of  nine  different  modes  of  fermentation,  will  be 
of  interest  to  the  reader,  showing  what  the  difference  is  in  the 
various  processes.  The  only  criticism  which  I  wish  to  make 
is  that  the  pressing  was  delayed  too  long.  I  think  it  was  a 
positive  injury  to  No.  559  to  delay  the  pressing  until  after  the 
sixth  day,  while  No.  560  should  have  been  pressed  on  the 
fifth  day,  and  none  of  them  ought  to  have  been  deferred  after 
the  ninth  day.  This  is  the  mistake,  in  my  opinion,  alluded 
to  before.  When  active  fermentation  has  ceased,  the  wine 
has  become  dry;  every  hour  delayed  works  a  positive  injury 
to  the  wine,  against  which  we  ought  to  guard.  This  is  my 
comment  on  the  wholesale  deduction  against  open  fermenta- 
tion made  by  the  learned  professor. 

My  readers  will  perceive  that  mine  is  not  the  "lazy  man's" 
'process.  In  fact,  I  do  not  count  on  laziness.  Those  who 
intend  to  succeed  in  this  industry  must  be  content  to  work 
sometimes  all  night;  if  necessary;  they  must  be  willing  to 
watch  their  vines  and  their  wine  with  unceasing  diligence  and 
care,  as  they  would  their  children;  and  "Excelsior"  must  be 


276  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

their  motto,  even  if  attained  at  some  physical  sacrifice. 

Following  the  very  interesting  experiments  of  Professor 
Hilgard,  I  give  a  treatise  by  R.  D'Heureuse  on  air  treatment, 
communicated  to  the  Grape  Culturist,  (a  paper  I  was  then 
publishing  in  the  interest  of  wine  making  and  grape  culture 
in  1870).  It  will  serve  to  show  that  the  same  principle,, 
aeration,  underlies  all  rational  fermentation.  It  contains 
much  food  for  thought,  and  a  great  deal  of  sound  theory,, 
which  has  since  been  verified  in  other  branches  of  industry. 
That  air  treatment  would  be  very  beneficial  to  our  California 
wines,  which  contain  a  large  amount  of  gluten,  is  evident; 
and  all  modern  writers  on  the  subject  advise  it  in  some  form 
or  other,  either  in  the  racking  of  wine,  by  letting  it  run, 
through  a  faucet  in  a  circular  manner,  through  a  rose,  to 
bring  each  particle  of  the  young  wine  into  contact  with  the 
air,  or  by  infusing  air  into  the  must  by  pumping  through  per- 
forated hose.  Many  predictions  of  poor  D'Huereuse,  who 
shared  the  fate  of  most  inventors  during  his  lifetime,  have- 
since  been  verified,  and  it  affords  me  pleasure  to  contribute 
thus  towards  "keeping  his  memory  green."  Small  were  his 
thanks  and  his  emoluments  for  bringing  more  light  to  bear 
upon  this  important  question,  but  the  future  may  yet  vindi- 
cate his  pet  theory.  It  seems  like  prophesy  to  read  his  predic- 
tions about  concentrating  must,  shipping  of  grapes,  centrali- 
ization  of  wine  industry,  etc.  The  same  great  problems  which 
we  are  trying  to  solve,  are  ably  forshadowed  in  his  treatise, 
and  seem  to  reach  fulfilment  now. 

EXPERIMENTS    ON    METHODS    OF     FERMENTATION. 

In  view  of  the  great  interest  attaching  to  the  determination 
of  the  effect  of  various  methods  of  fermentation  upon  the  re- 
sulting wines,  a  series  of  experimental  fermentations  with  one 
and  the  same  kind  of  grape,  treated  differently  both  in  re- 
spect to  temperature  and  the  appliances  used,  was  carried 
out  with  the  results  given  below,  so  far  as  the  record  reaches. 


WINE-MAKING  IN   CALIFORNIA.  277 

at  the  time  of  going  to  press.  While  in  some  cases  the  dif- 
ferences in  the  outcome  are  already  apparent,  and  are  even 
indicated  by  the  chemical  analyses,  in  others  they  are  at 
present  very  slight,  and  if  existing  at  all,  will  become  obvious 
only  in  the  development  of  the  wines. 

As  will  be  noted,  these  experiments  were  all  conducted 
within  the  limits  of  temperature  adapted  to  "high  fermenta- 
tion," since  no  means  were  at  hand  for  maintaining  a  tem- 
perature sufficiently  low  for  the  "low  fermentation"  proper. 
It  is  intended  to  arrange  for  such  experimental  low  fermen- 
tations next  season,  in  order  to  test  the  question  whether  in 
wine-making  the  same  precautions  now  universally  practiced 
in  the  case  of  beer,  might  not  be  profitably  employed  in  the 
preparation  of  wines  which,  like  those  of  the  Rhine  and 
Moselle,  are  essentially  low-fermented  and'  can  not  be  suc- 
cessfully reproduced  by  the  aid  of  high  fermentation.  For 
the  present  the  question  of  how  best  to  manage  the  fermen- 
tation at  the  prevailing  vintage  temperature  of  California  is 
the  one  having  the  greatest  practical  interest,  and  to  this  end 
the  experiments  were  directed. 

On  account  of  the  heavy  pressure  of  vintage  work,  these 
somewhat  laborious  experiments  had  to  be  deferred  until 
after  the  main  crop  was  in,  and  out  of  hand.  The  grapes 
used  were  a  very  good  article  of  second-crop  Zinfandel,  cour- 
teously donated  for  the  purpose  by  Mr.  J.  Gallegos,  of  Mis- 
sion San  Jose.  About  one  and  one-sixth  ton  of  these  grapes 
was  received  in  excellent  condition,  having  been  packed  in 
the  basket  crates  sent  from  the  University  for  the  purpose. 
The  berries  were  rather  small  and  the  bunches  quite  loose, 
but  thoroughly  sound;  taste  agreeably  sweet,  and  juice  abun- 
dant. The  composition  of  the  latter  was  as  follows: 

Solid  contents  by  spindle 21.05 

Sugar  by  copper  test 19.75 

Acid   65 

Ash    .27 


278  GRAPE  CULTURE    AND 

Nine  different  samples  were  fermented,  under  the  follow- 
ing conditions: 

(A.)  In  a  hot  chamber,  kept  at  a  temperature  ranging 
from  95°  to  io2u,  two  batches  of  about  63  pounds  each,  one 
(No.  557)  left  entirely  open  in  the  tub,  the  other  (No.  556) 
covered  with  a  * 'floating  top"  that  rose  and  fell  with  the 
pomace,  screening  it  from  access  of  air.  Both  were  stirred. 

(B.)  In  a  room  kept  at  a  temperature  ranging  from  72°  to 
75°,  five  fifty-gallon  tanks,  each  charged  with  about  230 
pounds  of  grapes,  filling  the  tanks  to  within  ten  inches  of  the 
top,  and  arranged  as  follows: 

No.  558.  Mash  put  in  in  three  successive  portions,  and 
each  kept  to  itself  by  means  of  a  lattice  framework  kept  in 
place  by  wedges,  thus  forcibly  keeping  the  pomace  sub- 
merged and  divided  into  three  separate 'portions,  according 
to  the  system  of  Ferret;  the  uppermost  frame  being  about 
two  inches  below  the  surface  of  the  must  before  fermenta- 
tion; a  cover  laid  on  top  of  the  tank,  according  to  Ferret's 
precept. 

No.  559.  Mash  put  in  at  once  and  the  pomace  kept  sub- 
merged about  two  inches  below  the  surface  by  means  of  a 
single  "Ferret's"  frame,  according  to  the  practice  prevailing, 
to  some  extent,  at  Fresno  and  elsewhere;  no  cover  of  any  kind. 

No.  560.  Mash  left  uncovered  and  subjected  to  frequent 
"  f outage  "  or  stirring,  at  least  three  times  a  day  during  fer- 
mentation ;  a  common  French  practice. 

No.  561.  Mash  covered  with  a  "floating  cover,"  rising 
and  falling  with  the  pomace,  and  stirred  three  times  a  day,  wash- 
ing off  the  upper  side  of  the  cover  in  case  of  frothing  over  ;  a 
method  also  used  in  France  and  adopted  as  both  good  and 
convenient,  in  the  Viticultural  Laboratory. 

No.  563.  Grapes  put  in  whole,  stems  and  all,  to  be  grad- 
ually crushed  by  means  of  the  cross-peg  stirrer  ;  a  method 
much  in  use  in  Burgundy,  and  also  practiced  at  several 


WINE-MAKING  IN   CALIFORNIA.  279 

wineries  in  this  State  ;  no  cover ;  stirrer  used  'energetically 
three  times  a  day.  "  Morel  process." 

No.  564.  A  tub  charged  with  about  140  pounds  of  mash 
and  then  left  to  itself,  cap,  vinegar,  flies,  and  all,  without 
stirring  or  cover  ;  the  old  Californian  method. 

(C.)  In  the  cellar  of  the  laboratory,  kept  at  a  steady  tem- 
perature of  62°. 

No.  562.  Fifty-gallon  tank  charged  like  the  rest,  with  230 
pounds  of  grape  mash,  provided  with  a  "  floating  cover,"  and 
stirred  three  times  daily. 

In  all  these  vessels  the  temperature  was  read  off  three  times 
daily,  during  the  height  of  fermentation  every  two  or  three 
hours,  and  in  the  tanks  provided  with  the  frames  the  tempera- 
ture of  the  top  liquid,  and  of  the  pomace  beneath  each  frame, 
was  separately  ascertained,  in  order  to  follow  the  exact  course 
of  the  fermentation.  Observations  similar  to  the  last  were 
made  every  morning  in  the  tanks  subjected  to  stirring,  so  as 
to  ascertain  the  temperature  of  the  top  and  bottom  layers  of 
the  pomace  cap  formed  during  the  night,  and  that  of  the 
liquid  beneath. 

The  observations  made  with  the  several  fermentations  are 
plotted  in  the  table  below,  for  greater  facility  of  obtaining  a 
comprehensive  view  of  the  results.  Where  several  figures  are 
placed  opposite  one  and  the  same  hour  of  observation,  they 
are  to  be  understood  as  representing  the  temperature  of  the 
top  and  bottom,  if  two  ;  if  three,  top,  middle,  and  bottom, 
respectively.  During  the  first  and  last  stages  of  the  fermen- 
tation, when  the  changes  were  very  slow,  observations  are 
sometimes  omitted. 

The  highest  temperature  observed  in  each  case  is  printed 
in  full-face  type. 

It  is  seen  from  the  table  that  the  high-temperature  fermen- 
tation, No.  556,  went  through  with  extraordinary  rapidity, 
the  young  wine  being  dry  within*  two  days  of  the  setting  of 


280  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

the  mash.  The  same  quantity  of  mash,  set  without  cover  and 
at  the  outset  left  without  stirring  (No,  557),  was  markedly 
slower  in  its  course,  although  the  maximum  temperature 
reached  was  the  same  and  occurred  about  the  same  time  as 
-in  the  other  case.  As  the  fermentation  seemed  nearly  ended 
on  the  evening  of  the  third  day,  a  floating  cover  was  put  on 
in  order  to  prevent  acetification  during  the  night,  and  the 
hot  chamber  was  opened  so  as  to  share  the  temperature  of 
the  room,  viz.,  75°.  But  in  the  morning  a  cap  had  formed 
and  a  slight  fermentation  was  still  going  on,  as  is  evidenced 
by  the  temperature  having  remained  at  93°,  despite  exposure 
to  a  much  lower  one.  But  a  few  hours  later  all  appearance 
of  fermentation  vanished.  It  is  not  easy  to  see  why  the 
absence  of  the  cover  should  have  made  so  much  difference  in 
the  time  of  ending  the  fermentation.  Less  frequent  stirring 
was  probably  the  main  cause. 

The  relatively  small  mass  concerned  in  these  fermentations 
prevented  the  temperature  from  rising  so  high  as  to  injure  the 
yeast,  102°  being  the  maximum  observed.  With  the  larger 
masses  used  in  the  other  experiments,  the  temperature  rose  as 
much  as  20°  above  that  of  the  room  ;  and  correspondingly 
the  maximum  in  these  two  fermentations  would  probably  have 
been  about  120°,  had  the  same  amount  of  grapes  been  used. 

In  the  two  fermentations  (Nos.  558  and  559)  with  frames 
to  keep  the  pomace  submerged,  the  record  shows  that  while 
up  to  the  time  of  the  maximum,  the  temperature  was  always 
highest  at  the  top,  shortly  afterward  this  relation  became  in- 
verted, the  lower  portion  being  found  warmer  than  the 
upper.  This  fact  is  most  apparent  in  the  case  where  the  sin- 
gle frame  was  used  (No.  559),  in  which  the  maximum  tem- 
perature of  the  must  below  the  pomace  cap  was  actually 
attained  about  thirty  hours  later  than  in  the  pomace  itself, 
showing  that  the  fermentation  in  this  lower  portion  was  far 
behind  that  in  the  upper.  This  consecutive  occurrence  of 


WINE-MAKING   IN    CALIFORNIA.  281 

maxima  explains  why  the  highest  temperature  found  in  the 
single-frame  process  was  considerably  (4°)  behind  that 
observed  in  the  three-frame  process  (No.  558),  where  the 
whole  mass  reached  its  most  intense  action  simultaneously, 
although  a  slight  occurrence  of  the  reversal  of  temperatures  is 
observable  here  also.  It  should  be  noted  that  (as  stated  in 
the  table)  the  latter  process  was  not  entirely  normal  in  its 
.course,  a  portion  of  the  pomace  that  should  have  stayed 
below  the  frames  having  been  carried  through  the  meshes  to 
the  surface  by  the  ascending  gas,  thus  equalizing  the  temper- 
ature throughout  the  mass  much  more  than  would  have  been 
the  case  had  the  pomace  cap  been  of  sufficient  thickness  under 
each  frame,  or  the  meshes  of  the  frame  fine  enough  to  pre- 
vent the  skins  from  rising  to  the  surface. 

Where  the  single  frame  only  was  used,  scarcely  a  grape 
skin  was  seen  on  the  surface  ;  and  except  toward  the  last,  the 
maximum  temperature  was  always  found  near  the  lower  layer 
of  the  pomace  cap.  During  the  last  two  days  a  white  scum 
was  seen  to  gradually  form  on  the  surface  of  the  wine,  and  in 
the  end  gathered  into  -white  mould  islets,  as  was  observable 
under  the  microscope.  No  such  scum  was  to  be  seen  on  the 
three-frame  tank,  which  had  remained  covered  during  the 
whole  process,  except  while  the  temperature  was  being  taken. 

Marked  differences  in  the  course  of  their  fermentation  is 
also  apparent  in  two  tanks  that  were  subjected  to  /outage,  or 
stirring,  viz.  :  Nos.  560  and  561.  The  one  which  was  left 
open  to  the  air,  and  also  received  an  extra  amount  of  stirring, 
fermented  with  a  violence  greater  than  any  of  the  others  ;  so 
that  in  order  to  prevent  a  wholesale  running  over  of  the  froth 
and  serious  loss,  it  became  necessary  to  fasten  down  on  it  a 
cover  for  four  hours.  The  maximum  temperature  of  95°  was 
not,  however,  reached  until  about  eighteen  hours  later,  al- 
though the  pomace  cap  at  the  depth  of  seven  inches  showed 
101°  after  the  violence  subsided.  The  action  and  tempera- 


282  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

ture  then  rapidly  declined,  and  the  mash  was  ready  for  press- 
ing quite  twenty-four  hours  before  the  tank  which  had  heen 
fermented  with  the  cover  on.  The  latter  reached  its  highest 
temperature  about  the  same  time  as  No.  560,  but  it  was  only 
92°,  3°  lower,  and  the  most  violent  fermentation  occurred 
about  eight  hours  after  the  violent  outburst  of  the  companion 
tank  was  over.  A  slight  action  continued  quite  twenty-four 
hours  longer  in  the  tank  fermented  with  the  cover  on. 

In  the  latter  respect  we  have  here  the  reverse  of  what  oc- 
curred in  the  hot  chamber,  where  the  mash  having  the  cover 
on  went  through  most  rapidly.  But  this  was  not  much  stirred 
at  first,  and  the  larger  experiment  conforms  to  the  presump- 
tion in  the  premises,  which  is  that  the  more  perfect  aeration 
will  bring  about  the  most  vigorous  fermentation. 

In  the  case  o(  No.  563,  the  "  Morel  process,"  in  which  the 
grapes  were  put  in  the  tank  with  the  stems  uncrushed,  and 
were  gradually  crushed  with  pole  provided  with  cross  pegs,  the 
course  of  the  fermentation  seems  to  have  been  governed  more 
by  the  fact  that  the  stems  kept  the  pomace  diffused  through 
the  whole  mass,  than  by  the  intended  gradual  crushing  of  the 
grapes.  The  latter  were  so  tender  that  after  the  fourth  day 
little  more  crushing  could  be  affected,  the  whole  having  be- 
come so  liquefied  that  the  berries  remaining  uncrushed  evaded 
the  pole;  but  instead  of  forming  a  solid  cap  on  top,  the  pomace 
and  stems  always  reached  within  six  to  nine  inches  of  the  bot- 
tom of  the  tank;  and  thus  the  fermentation  was  accomplished 
nearly  under  the  same  conditions  as  that  of  No.  558  (three 
frames),  but  with  the  addition  of  aeration.  Hence  the  tem- 
perature rose  higher  than  in  any  other  mash  fermented  in  the 
same  room,  viz.:  to  97°.  This  maximum  was  reached  about 
the  same  time  as  in  the  others — on  the  fifth  day;  but  the  fer- 
mentation continued  slowly,  and  doubtless,  in  consequence  of 
the  occasional  crushing  of  fresh  berries,  the  wine  was  longer 
in  getting  dry  than  any  of  the  rest.  It  thus  appears  that  in 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  283 

the  actual  practice  of  this  method,  the  effect  on  the  tempera- 
ture will  depend  greatly  upon  the  nature  of  the  grapes  so  treat- 
ed. The  small-berried,  thick-skinned  Pinots,  to  which  this 
treatment  is  chiefly  applied  in  France,  will  in  general  gain  the 
benefit  .of  a  slower  fermentation,  but  in  application  to  such 
grapes  as  Zinfandel,  Charbono,  and  similar  delicate-skinned 
grapes,  the  practice  seems  to  present  no  advantages.  Unless 
a  strict  measure  is  observed  in  the  pounding,  in  the  case  of 
very  juicy  grapes,  a  certain  proportion  is  sure  to  escape  crush- 
ing altogether. 

No.  564.  The  " go-as-you-please"  method  of  many  early 
and  some  contemporary  wine-makers,  in  which  the  pomace 
was  allowed  to  rise  to  the  top  and  stay  there  to  the  end,  ex- 
posed to  air,  mould  and  vinegar  flies,  was,  of  course,  intended 
only  to  illustrate  "  how  not  to  do  it."  The  pomace-cap  was 
for  most  of  the  time  emerged  from  one  and  a  half  to  two 
inches  above  the  must,  and  began  to  acetify  so  soon  as  the 
violent  fermentation  was  over;  the  temperature  in  the  pomace 
rising  as  high  as  89°  on  the  fourth  day.  But  in  the  absence 
of  any  stirring-in  of  the  pomace,  the  fermentation  in  the  must 
below  was  slow  in  completing  itself,  and  a  slight  action  con- 
tinued into  the  eleventh  day.  By  that  time  a  generation  of 
vinegar-fly  maggots  had  developed  and  was  making  the 
emerged  pomace  look  very  lively;  in  pressing,  some  animal 
juices  inevitably  mingled  with  the  wine,  but  the  latter  showed 
no  obvious  defect  at  the  time  of  pressing,  and  its  taste  was 
that  of  a  more  advanced  product  than  any  of  the  others.  Its 
subsequent  history  remains  to  be  seen. 

No.  562  was  fermented  under  precisely  the  same  treatment 
as  No.  561  (that  is,  with  floating  cover,  and  thrice  daily  fou- 
lage),  except  that  the  temperature  was,  on  an  average,  13° 
lower,  that  is,  62°.  It  started  slowly;  its  maximum  tempera- 
ture was  reached  about  twelve  hours  later  than  in  those  fer- 


284 


GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 


mented  at  75°,  and  did  not  exceed  83°.  It  had  become  fairly 
still  on  the  tenth  day,  and  should  have  been  pressed  on  the 
eleventh;  while  the  tank  similarly  treated  at  75°  was  pressed 
on  the  eighth  day.  It  was  a  healthy  steady,  fermentation,  at 
no  time  threatening  to  froth  over  the  tank,  and  only  fora  short 
time  frothing  over  even  the  floating  cover.  It  was  by  far  the 
most  comfortable  fermentation  of  the  nine. 

COMPOSITION    OF    THE    WINES. 

The  table  below  shows  the  composition  of  the  wines  result- 
ing from  the  several  fermentations.  They  were  all  analyzed, 
and  their  color  determined,  within  a  few  days  after  pressing, 
the  murk  being  filtered  for  the  purpose. 

COMPOSITION  OF  GRAPES  AND  MUST,  AND  WINES  PRODUCED  THERE- 
FROM BY  DIFFERENT  METHODS  OF  FERMENTATION. 


S3 

c 

GRAPES. 

I 

* 

i 

& 

«'£ 

•  S? 

i-QS- 

?! 

B2 

s| 

Ii 

O 
£L 
o* 

Q 

°l 

o2 

p  S 

3  »•- 

c  o 

S  p 

•"  P       o 

•  .•    . 

rs  «» 

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rs 

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:   "-^ 

LI 

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>-•> 
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c 

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> 

^- 

556 
557 

\  Foulage,  with  floating  cover  )  T  QRO    mno 
j  Foulage  without  cover                    j 

61.0 
650 

11.1 
10  8 

7.0 

7  o 

5g 

172 

169 

558 

~1  Three  Ferret's  Frames  ] 

230 

/2 

559 

560 

j  Single  Ferret  Frame                 .     .     | 

230 
230 

!  Foulage,  no  cover  !m  ,-2o    -50 

561 

f  Foulage  with  floating  top        ..       ..  j               ' 

230 

563 

1  Morel  Process                                        I 

230 

564 

J  Old  Style,  no  covet  nor  foulage  j 

140 

562 

Foulage  and  floating  top  Temp  t>'/0 

230 

| 

WINE- MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


285 


MUST. 

WINE. 

^ 

.1 

> 
& 

Q 

a 

jj 

0§ 

| 

Alcohol. 

a 

i 

Color. 

1 

id  Content 
pindle.... 

pe  Sugar.. 

en 

f 

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d  as  Tarta 

to 

1 

03 

| 

a 
1 

H 

5' 

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: 

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2. 
p 

r1" 

0 

p' 

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1 

56 

1 

f    7.78 

9.73 

.49 

.14 

45.4 

...2d 

57 

7.78 

9.73 

.59 

.13 

42.4 

2d. 

58 

7.78 

9.73 

.49 

.10 

30.0 

...2d 

59 

7.23 

9.00 

.51 

.10 

27.6 

..M 

80 

}•    21.1 

.27 

16.40 

9.35 

19.75 

.65 

•!    7.78 

9.73 

.65 

.10 

46.4 

ft) 

7.78 

9.73 

.53 

.12 

47.0 

...2d 

>6o 

7.16 

8.93 

.67 

.13 

47.6 

...2d 

«4 

7.09 

8.85 

.56 

.12 

46.6 

...2d 

)62 

J 

I    7.78 

9.73 

.56 

.12 

34.1 

...3d 

ALCOHOLIC  STRENGTH. 

As  regards,  first,  the  alcoholic  contents  of  the  several  wines, 
it  will  be  noted  that  the  same  percentage  was  obtained  in  six 
out  of  the  nine  ;  while  three,  viz.,  Nos.  559,  563,  and  564, 
corresponding  respectively  to  the  single  fram-e,  Morel,  and 
"old-style"  processes,  show  a  deficiency  which  does  not  differ 
widely  for  the  three,  being  not  quite  one  per  cent. 

In  two  of  the  above  cases  this  result  was  to  be  expected, 
and  the  causes  are  not  far  to  seek.  In  the  single-frame  pro- 
cess, a  relatively  thin  layer  of  liquid  was  exposed  to  the  air, 
constantly  agitated  by  the  gas  coming  from  below,  and  heated  by 
its  position  just  over  the  hot  cap.  The  alcohol  simply  evapor- 
ated from  this  isolated  portion  of  the  wine,  and  where  this 
mode  of  fermentation  is  practiced  on  the  large  scale,  I  have 
sometimes  found  this  layer  so  warm  that  toward  the  end  of  the 
fermentation  the  bulk  of  its  alcohol  was  gone  and  it  had  a 
vapid,  flat  taste,  often  more  of  vinegar  than  of  alcohol. 

In  the  case  of  the  old-style  process,  also,  it  is  easy  to  see 
where  the  loss  of  alcohol  occurs.  It  is  here  the  hot  pomace 
cap,  offering  a  large  surface  to  the  air  and  kept  drenched  with 
the  fermenting  liquid  by  the  bubbling  up  from  below,  which 


286  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

assists  the  evaporation.  That  the  latter  is  accompanied  by 
its  transformation  into  vinegar  is  apparent  to  the  nostrils  so 
soon  as  the  first  violent  stage  of  the  fermentation  is  past. 

In  the  case  of  the  "Morel  process"  the  cause  of  the  loss  of 
alcohol  is  not  so  obvious.  It  might  be  accounted  for  by  the 
abundant  stirring  and  high  temperature,  and,  doubtless,  this 
contributes  to  the  evaporation,  so  much  the  more  as  the 
terns,  more  or  less  emerged  above  the  surface,  afford  better 
opportunity  than  a  cap  formed  of  skins  alone.  Yet  the  loss 
appears  to  be  greater  than  can  be  accounted  for  on  this  basis 
alone,  for  the  reason  that  in  No.  560,  where  thefoufagf  was 
nearly  as  diligent  as  in  the  "Morel"  tank,  and  which  was  also 
open  to  the  air,  the  alcohol  percentage  is  not  sensibly  dimin- 
ished. It  is  possible  that  from  some  cause  a  part  of  the  sugar 
may  have  been  converted  into  some  other  compound  than  al- 
cohol ;  among  these,  glycerine  suggests  itself,  but  the  deter- 
mination of  this  substance  in  the  wines  has  not  yet  been  made. 

A  somewhat  unexpected  result  is  the  fact  that  the  two  hot 
fermentations  (556  and  557)  yielded  the  same  amount  of  al- 
cohol as  those  fermented  at  a  much  lower  temperature.  The 
obvious  explanation  is,  that  the  short  duration  of  these  fer- 
mentations balanced  the  influence  of  the  high  temperature  as 
compared  with  those  in  the  slower  fermentations,  in  which 
the  opportunity  for  evaporation  lasted  longer.  It  will  be  highly 
interesting  to  compare,  hereafter,  the  other  products  formed 
alongside  of  the  alcohol  in  the  three  sets  of  fermentations. 

ACID. 

As  regards,  next,  the  acid  of  the  several  wines,  it  is  not  un- 
expected to  find  that  the  openfou/age,  No.  560,  on  the  one 
hand,  and  the  Morel  process  on  the  other,  having  given  the 
highest' figure,  the  one  because  of  the  constant  access  of  air, 
the  other  from  the  same  cause,  in  addition  to  the  extraction 
of  acid  from  the  stems. 


WINE-MAKING    IN   CALIFORNIA.  287 

The  lowest  figure  for  acid  (.49)  is  given  by  Nos.  556  and 
558,  the  hot  fermentation  with  cover,  and  by  the  one  with 
the  three  submerged  frames.  In  the  case  of  the  latter  this 
was  to  be  looked  for,  and  is  precisely  one  of  the  chief  advan- 
tages claimed  for  Ferret's  method.  In  the  case  of  the  former 
it  is  somewhat  unexpected,  and  is  the  more  instructive  in  con- 
trast to  No.  557,  the  hot  fermentation  in  which  no  cover  was 
used,  and  in  which  the  acid  is  one  pro-mille  higher.  Almost 
precisely  the  same  difference  occurs  in  the  fermentations  made 
at  the  lower  temperature,  one  with  the  floating  cover  on  (No. 
561)  and  the  other  (No.  560)  without  cover.  The  beneficial 
influence  of  the  cover  in  preventing  the  formation  of  acid 
during  fermentation  is  therefore  placed  beyond  question. 

It  should,  however,  be  added,  that  in  none  of  the  fermen- 
tations made,  there  is  at  this  time  (November  24),  a  notable 
amount  of  volatile  (acetic)  acid.  This  is  true  even  of  No. 
564,  the  "old-style"  one,  in  which  the  odor  of  vinegar  was 
abundantly  obvious  before '  pressing.  It  shows  the  odor  of 
vinegar  plainly  in  boiling,  but  the  amount  is  at  present  less 
than  five  thousandths  of  one  per  cent. 

•It  is  somewhat  remarkable  that  the  fermentation  of  562, 
made  at  the  lowest  temperature,  should  yield  a  relatively 
high  proportion  of  acid,  .exceeding  that  found  in  the  fermen- 
tation made  under  the  same  conditions  at  a  higher  tempera- 
ture. Whether  this  is  to  be  accounted  for  by  the  longer 
duration  of  the  low-temperature  fermentation,  remains  to  be 
investigated. 

TANNIN. 

Considering,  next,  the  matter  of  tannin,  we-  note  at  a 
glance  the  influence  of  the  high  temperature  in  aiding  a  com- 
plete extraction.  The  two  hot  fermentations,  Nos.  556  and 
557,  have  given  the  maximum  of  tannin,  despite  their  short 
duration;  more  even  than  in  the  case  of  the  tank  with  dili- 
gent open  foulage,  and  as  much  as  the  Morel  process,  stems 

19 


288  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

and  all,  which  was  continued  for  eleven  days;  the  effect  in 
this  case  is  so  marked  as  to  leave  no  doubt  of  the  influence 
of  this  factor,  and  in  it  lies,  probably,  at  least  a  part  of  the 
explanation  of  the  fact  that  the  hot  parts  of  our  State  have 
yielded  more  tannin  in  their  red  wines  than  the  cooler  ones. 

The  two  tanks  in  which  the  frames  were  used  (Nos.  558 
and  559)  present  a  curious  problem.  In  both  cases  the 
same  amount  of  tannin  was  taken  up,  although  in  the  one, 
the  pomace  was  in  a  solid  mass,  and  in  the  other,  was  kept 
diffused  all  through.  The  result  is  disappointing  as  concerns 
the  three-frame  process,  and  shows  clearly  why,  despite  its 
apparent  advantages,  this  method  of  treatment  has  not  been 
widely  adopted  even  in  France.  It  is  evident  that  simply 
keeping  the  pomace  in  the  liquid  cannot  replace  the  grinding 
and  disintegrating  action  of  the  direct  stirring  or  foulage^  so 
far  as  the  extraction  of  tannin  and  color  are  concerned;  for 
a  glance  at  the  color-column  shows,  that  the  deficiency  of 
tannin  is  accompanied  by  a  similar  relative  deficiency  of  color, 
as  compared  with  the  tanks  that  were  stirred.  The  same 
holds  of  the  single-frame  fermentation,  where  the  color  is 
even  less;  and  the  fact  that  an  even  amount  of  tannin  was 
extracted  notwithstanding  the  pomace  was  in  a  solid  mass  at 
the  top,  is  explained  by  the  high  temperature  which,  as  the 
table  shows,  prevailed  in  that  cap.  The  same  consideration 
doubtless  applies  to  the  "old-style"  (No.  562),  in  which  the 
high  temperature  of  the  pomace-cap  offset  the  lack  of  stirring, 
and  both  tannin  and  color  were  fully  extracted. 

A  singular  and  unexplained  fact  is  the  deficiency  of  tannin 
in  the  tank  with  open  foulage,  without  cover,  for  which  no 
obvious  cause  can  be  assigned;  the  duplication  of  the  deter- 
mination, however,  leaves  no  doubt  of  the  fact,  which  can 
hardly  be  explained  without  assuming  that  some  of  the  tan- 
nin at  first  extracted  was  subsequently  destroyed  by  the  action 
of  the  air.  If  this  were  so,  the  full  complement  of  tannin  in 


WINE-MAKING    IN     CALIFORNIA.  289 

the  ''Morel"  product  might  be  explained  by  the  presence  of 
the  astringent  stems. 

The  column  giving  the  color-intensities  is  very  instructive 
also.  It  will  be  seen  that  those  yielding  a  low  color  were 
the  two  tanks  with  frames,  already  discussed,  and  the  low- 
temperature  fermentation,  No.  562,  in  which  despite  diligent 
stirring,  and  the  pretty  full  extraction  of  tannin,  that  of  the 
color  remained  incomplete,  being  nearly  one-third  less  than 
the  maximum. 

The  full  discussion  of  the  bearings  of  these  fermentation 
experiments  is  perhaps  best  deferred  until  the  development  of 
the  wines,  and  their  full  analysis  in  their  more  advanced  con- 
dition, shall  give  more  data  in  regard  to  the  final  results  ot 
the  several  treatments.  Those  familiar  with  the  subject  of 
fermentation  may,  however,  already  derive  important  lessons 
from  what  is  recorded  above.  Of  course,  these  results  must 
be  verified  by  repetition  during  the  coming  season,  before 
they  can  be  accepted  as  maxims;  but  there  is  much  that 
cannot  well  be  upset  by  any  subsequent  experiments.  Among 
the  points  that  may  be  considered  well  settled,  is  that  the 
method  of  fermentation  adopted  by  this  department  (viz. . 
floating  cover,  with  thrice  daily  stirring)  is  amply  justified  by 
the  outcome'of  the  nine  fermentations.  It  secures  all  the  ad-, 
vantages  of  aeration,  full  extraction  of  tannin  and  color,  and 
maximum  of  alcohol,  without  any  risk  of  acetification  if 
properly  managed.  The  method  has  been  carried  out  on  the 
large  scale  by  Mr.  John  Gallegos  for  two  years  past,  and  has 
yielded  excellent  results;  the  only  difficulty  encountered  be- 
ing that  in  the  case  of  very  soft-skinned  grapes,  the  frequent 
stirring  reduced  them  to  a  pulp  which  it  was  difficult  to  press. 
In  such  cases  the  stirring  must  be  moderated  and  made  with 
implements  having  the  least  crushing  effect;  but  I  am  satis- 
fied that  in  the  hot  vintage-climate  of  California,  the  leav- 
ing-open  of  fermenting  tanks  to  the  access  of  air  is  most 


. 

290  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

objectionable,  is  one  of  the  most  common  and  prominent 
causes  of  unsoundness,  and  should  Ue  done  away  with  uni- 
versally, adopting  either  the  use  of  floating  covers,  or  at  least 
a  cover  over  the  top  of  the  tank.  Whether  the  disadvantages 
of  the  single-frame  system  can  be  overcome  by  a  repeated 
pumping  over  of  the  liquid  from  below  over  the  pomace,  is  a 
question  yet  to  be  determined;  but  that  in  the  use  of  this 
method  there  is  always  a  serious  loss  of  color  and  tannin  cart 
hardly  be  doubtful. 

E.  W.  HILGARD. 


CHAPTER  V. 
D'HEUREUSE  AIR  TREATMENT. 

Alleged  improvements,  involving  sweeping  changes  in  many 
industries,  should  above  all  bear  the  light  which  close  practical 
investigation  may  shed  upon  errors  to  which  new  as  well  as 
time-venerated  doctrines  are  subject;  corroborative  tests  only 
can  establish  their  value.  Theories,  apparently  sound,  by 
neglect  of  some  essential  condition,  may  fail  to  be  confirmed 
by  tests.  One  of  the  most  general  and  firmly  rooted  notions 
has  been  the  dread  of  access  of  air  during  fermenting  or  pre- 
serving operations;  the  most  satisfactory  proofs  only  will  es- 
tablish the  fact  that  exclusion  of  air  should  be  abolished,  and 
that  the  suggestion  of  air-treatment  as  a  safe,  cheap,  easy  and 
effectual  agent  for  wine  and  other  industries  is  well  founded. 
For  the  sake  of  our  American  wine  industry  it  is  proposed  to 
review  the  principles  on  which  air-treatment  is  based,  the 
manipulations,  the  advantages  claimed,  and  the  conditions  to 


AVINJK-MAKING   IN   CALIFORNIA.  291 

be  observed,  the  knowledge  of  which,  by  exercise  of  common 
sense,  would  enable  any  unbiased  individual  to  test  and  judge 
for  himself. 

FUNDAMENTAL    PRINCIPLES. 

One  broad  principle  underlies  nearly  all  applications  of 
air-treatment  for  the  purpose  of  imparting  stability,  and  to 
prevent  deterioration  in  organic  substances  by  a  rapidly  oxi- 
dizing and  eliminating  action  on  the  albumenous  parts, 
which  all  crude  organic  substances  contain,  so  that  by  ordin- 
ary elementary  exposure  the  substance  may  decompose  or 
decay  an.d  thus  form,  in  the  admirable  economy  of  nature, 
sustenance  for  other  organism.  The  presence  of  the  albu- 
menous parts  is  an  essential  condition  of  decomposition,  their 
removal  insures  stability,  comparatively  or  absolute.  Cur- 
rents of  air  passed  through  the  substance  to  act  uniformly  on 
all  parts,  effect  first  of  all  an  oxidation  of  the  albumenous 
matter,  which  is  rendered  insoluble  and  thus  eliminated 
either  during  fermentation,  by  which  the  sugar  is  converted 
into  alcohol,  or  by  absence  of  fermentation  at  a  temperature 
above  135°  F.,  at  which  organism  is  killed,  or  by  both 
modes  in  conjunction.  These  few  plain  intelligible  facts 
constitute  the  whole  basis  of  air-treatment,  the  applications 
are  simply  deductions. 

It  is  certainly  an  error  that  all  albumenous  matter  coagu- 
lates at  a  certain  high  temperature;  if  this  were  correct,  a 
fluid  so  heated  for  hours  could,  if  clear  and  limpid,  contain 
no  albumen.  Experience  plainly  contradicts  this,  for  in- 
stance, in  vegetable  or  animal  extracts  obtained  by  heat, 
malt  or  grain  wort,  saccharine  juices,  crude  oils,  fats,  etc. 
Nor  do  these  and  other  substances,  containing  gluten  or  al- 
bumen, acquire  stability  by  mere  heating;  if,  [after  cooling, 
the  germs  of  micoderms  in  the  air  find  access,  they  cause 
fermentation  or  decay,  as  long  as  they  find  albumenous  parts 
to  feed  upon.  These  however  removed,  no  micodermic 


292  GRAPE  CULTURE   A*ND 

action  can  take  place,  and  stability  is  imparted.  It  thus  be- 
comes plain  that  all  manipulations  and  processes  tor  the 
preservation  of "  organic  matter  should  go  towards  freeing 
them  from  the  albumenous  parts,  otherwise  they  remain  im- 
perfect and  unreliable. 

The  alcohol  of  wine  is  more  inclined  to  turn  into  acetic 
acid  the  less  alcohol  is  present,  and  the  larger  the  proportion 
of  gluten.  Thoroughly  fermented  wine  generally  contains 
but  little  gluten,  so  that  the  heating  process  (to  i2i°-i3i° 
F.  to  kill  the  micoderms)  as  a  rule  forms  a  protection;  how- 
ever, if  not  previously  fermented  dry,  the  wine  will  remain 
sweet,  for  no  known  process  but  fermentation  alternates  the 
sugar. 

In  accordance  with  the  foregoing,  wine  freed  from  gluten 
by  air-treatment  should  have  received  full  protection  against 
future  disturbance,  and  the  results  obtained  corroborate  the 
assumption;  not  only  after  but  during  fermentation,  a  secur- 
ity is  obtained  which  heretofore  was  wanting,  this  most  im- 
portant part  of  all  wine  making,  the  fermentation,  placed 
under  the  control  of  time. 

THEORY    OF    FERMENTATION. 

A  brief  allusion  to  the  principles  of  fermentation  may  be 
in  place.  Alcoholic  fermentation  is  the  result  of  the  pres- 
ence of  certain  micoderms,  that  require  air  for  vigorous 
healthy  action  and  propagation,  while  they  suffer  from  want 
of  atmospheric  oxygen.  Ozone  is  formed  by  rapid  passage 
of  air  through  (aqueous)  fluid,  and  invigorates  the  alcoholic, 
acts  destructively  on  other  but  injurious  micoderms  that 
cause  disease,  putrefaction  and  acidification;  but  both  kinds 
can  only  vegetate  where  they  find  gluten  to  live.  Periodical 
currents  of  air  through  a  fermenting  fluid  accelerate,  insure 
and  perfect  the  fermentation  by  invigorating  the  alcoholic 
micoderms,  and  the  excess  of  gluten  is  at  the  same  time 
gradually  removed  by  oxidation,  so  that  none  remains  to 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  293 

support  the  micoderms  that  necessarily  perish  when  their 
functions — conversion  of  sugar  into  alcohol — is  accomplished. 
Unless  invigorated,  fermentation  proceeds  very  slowly  to- 
ward the  end,  as  when  the  atmospheric  oxygen  is  exhausted, 
the  alcohol  formed  seems  to  stupify  the  micoderms;  a  large 
proportion  of  alcohol,  or  presence  of  alkaloids,  (hops  and 
glycerine  for  instance)  prevents  or  retards  fermentation. 

Ground  taste  in  wine  is  due  to  the  gluten  it  contains  and 
improper  treatment  which  brings  out  the  taste.  Air-treat- 
ment removes  with  the  gluten  all  tendency  to  ground  taste. 

HOW    AIR-TREATMENT    IS    APPLIED    TO    FLUID. 

To  impregnate  a  fluid  with  a  gas,  we  admit  the  gas  below, 
that  it  may  rise  upwards  through  the  fluid.  Accordingly  the 
air,  to  act  most  effectually,  is  admitted  into  the  fluid  in  a 
divided  state  by  perforated  pipes  or  mouth  pieces,  sunk  near 
the  bottom  of  the  vessel,  impelled  by  an  air-force  pump. 
Air-treatment  of  a  hot  fluid  for  purification  from  albumen  re- 
quires a  vigorous  and  continuous  current  of  air  frequently  for 
hours  to  coagulate  all  albumenous  parts  ;  for  fermentation 
however,  periodical  gentle  currents  are  sufficient. 

TO    WINE    ESPECIALLY. 

A  vigorous  fermentation  has  been  found  the  most  satisfac- 
tory for  must  as  well  as  other  mash,  and  a  sufficiently  high 
temperature  (75°  to  85°  F.)  is  essential.  Fluctuation  of 
temperature  should  be  avoided  as  always  detrimental.  When 
the  must  is  warmed  (in  a  gathering  tank)  to  about  65°  to  70° 
F.,  the  tanks  or  casks  filled,  the  temperature  steadily  main- 
tained, air  is  impelled  vigorously  for  some  ten  minutes,  and 
unless  sugar  is  added,  a  foaming  up  by  a  rising  scum,  will  soon 
take  place.  After  this  subsides  (from  six  to  ten  hours)  air  is 
gently  impelled  two  or  three  times  each  day  for  about  five 
minutes  at  a  time,  till  the  fermentation  is  finished,  which  is 
accomplished  at  the  stated  temperature  in  from  five  to"  four- 


294  GRAPE  CULTURE    AM) 

teen  days  without  fail.  The  air  pipes  (of  block  tin)  are  intro- 
duced into  the  casks  through  the  bung-hole,  in  tanks  from 
above,  and,  where  pulp  is  worked  for  red  wine,  should  be 
stationary  for  the  operation.  The  tendency  to  clarify  appears 
at  once  when  the  carbonic  acid  gas  ceases  to  form.  A  few 
days  later  the  still  somewhat  turbid  wine  may  be  drawn  off  to 
settle  in  casks,  bunged  up,  and  a  few  weeks"  later  will  be 
found  clear,  of  free  ripe  taste,  subject  to  no  after  fermentation 
or  other  wine  disease,  free  of  ground  taste,  and  fit  to  be 
shipped  to  any  part  of  the  world,  without  more  risk  than  old 
well  stored  wines.  Scrupulous  cleanliness,  sweet  vessels,  etc., 
are,  of  course,  always  essential. 

With  proper  care  and  judgment,  all  wines  can  be  quickly 
finished  by  air-treatment,  that  were  previously  but  imperfectly 
fermented  in  the  usual  mode,  even  diseased  wines  (if  free 
from  acetic  acidification)  restored.  But  no  general  directions 
can  in  these  cases  guarantee  success  to  careless  or  inexper- 
ienced persons.  It  should,  however,  be  born  in  mind,  that 
in  all  the  above  cases,  the  object  is  the  removal  of  the  excess 
of  gluten  by  a  quickly  started  and  lively  (though  brief)  fer- 
mentation, for  which  the  presence  of  some  sound  amd  active 
ferment,  sufficient  sugar,  proper  heat  and  air  are  essential. 
Addition  of  ferment  may,  therefore,  be  required,  or  of  sugar, 
the  determination  of  the  proper  proportions  of  either,  is  the 
work  of  experience  and  judgment.  The  ferment — if  sound 
wine  yeast  or  another  kind — should  be  brought  into  full  vig- 
orous action  before  it  is  added  to  the  quickly-warmed  wine 
(of  70  to  75°  F.),  this  temperature  retained  unchangeable 
during  the  few  days  of  subsequent  finishing  fermentation.  All 
subsequent  processes  are,  however,  obviated  by  the  use  of 
air-treatment  of  the  new  must,  cider,  etc.,  which  is  thus  car- 
ried at  once  beyond  the  reach  of  the  many  vicissitudes  to 
which  wines  fermented  in  the  usual  manner,  are  subject. 

Wines  may  be  classified  in  a  general  way  as  sweet  and  dry 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  295 

wines,  or  those  still  containing  sugar,  and  those  entirely  or 
nearly  free  from  it.  Dry  wines  form  the  bulk  of  the  product 
of  European  and  domestic  vintages,  as  the  modes  to  manu- 
facture them  appeared  more  simple.  It  has  been  shown 
above  how  dry  wines  are  more  quickly,  safely  and  cheaply 
obtained  by  air-treatment. 

SWEET    WINES, 

However,  are  as  yet  obtained  by  partial  fermentation,  inter- 
ruption of  this  process  ;  and  by  addition  of  spirits  (to  20  per 
cent,  or  more  of  alcohol)  or  glycerine,  etc.,  stability  is  im- 
parted, further  fermentation  and  deterioration  rather  kept 
under  than  precluded.  They  are  cordials  rather  than  wines. 
No  sweet  and  light  alcoholic  wines  are  in  the  market  (except 
sparkling),  for  the  simple  reason  that  they  could  not  be  manu- 
factured with  any  degree  of  stability ;  the  remnant  of  the 
gluten  prevented  it.  Air-treatment  furnishes  an  easy  solution 
to  this  question  also,  and  permits  the  manufacture  of  sweet 
wines  of  any  desired  alcoholic  strength  and  most  perfect  stabil- 
ity, because  free  from  gluten.  Americans  are  fond  of  sweet, 
wines  and  should  have  them. 

The  must,  fresh  from  the  grape  (or  other  fruit),  heated  to 
above  140°  F.  is  vigorously  air-treated  for  a  couple  of  hours 
(or  less),  till  the  albumen  is  coagulated,  which  is  removed  by 
bag  filtering,  still  hot.  After  cooling  to  70°  F.  it  is  subjected 
to  air-fermentation  with  the  addition  of  a  quantity  of  green 
must,  suitable  to  insure  the  desired  proportions  of  alcohol  and 
sweetness.  Or  any  wine  obtained  by  thorough  air-fermenta- 
tion may  be  sweetened  with  crushed  sugar  free  of  gluten  to 
suit  the  taste,  without  danger  of  future  disturbance. 

BRANDY. 

The  described  air-treatment  for  fermentation  of  must  or 
piquette  secures  by  full  attenuation  of  all  saccharine  parts  a 
higher  yield,  of  10  to  15  per  cent,  of  spirits,  than  the  usual 


296  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

mode,  in  which  2  per  cent,  or  more  of  the  saccharine  from 
the  12  to  20  in  pulp  or  juice,  is  left  unconverted  and  irre- 
claimably  lost.  (The  loss  in  grain  mash  thus  saved  is  still 
higher,  from  1 6  to  25  per  cent.) 

The  azotized  parts  are  rendered  insoluble,  and  by  clearing 
or  straining  are  kept  out  of  the  still,  permit  the  formation  of 
none  or  very  little  fusel  oil,  so  that  a  purer  spirit  at  once  re- 
sults, Air-treatment  in  the  still  during  distillation  of  any 
pulp  produces  spirits  free  of  fusel  (at  least  the  first  run),  and 
subsequent  air-treatment  of  any  distilled  spirits  at  a  raised 
temperature  in  suitable  close  vessels  communicates  quickly 
the  properties  of  age,  destroys  the  fusel-oils.  To  retain  the 
fullest  natural  wine  flavor  in  brandies,  redistillation  for  refin- 
ing should  be  avoided  as  much  as  possible,  and  air-treatment 
provides  the  best  means  to  effect  at  once  cheaply  what  many 
years  of  storing  is  generally  made  to  accomplish  with  enor- 
mous expenditure. 

It  is  obvious  that  must,  deprived  of  gluten,  (what  no  other 
known  process  accomplishes)  in  the  hot  state  as  explained, 
like,  any  other  extract,  may  be  subsequently  concentrated, 
without  the  addition  of  sugar  or  anything  else,  kept  in  casks 
on  draught,  as  preserve,  confectionary,  or  may  be  employed 
as  addition  in  wine  making  in  distant  parts,  to  produce 
greater  variety  of  wine  at  any  place.  Enormous  quantities 
of  thus  purified  concentrated  must  from  California  or  other 
southern  grapes,  containing  little  bouquet  and  much  sugar, 
could  be  more  profitably  employed  to  blend  with  green  musts 
of  northern  strong  flavored  grapes,  deficient  in  sugar;  than 
turning  either  into  wine  separately. 

CENTRALIZATION    IN    WINE    INDUSTRY. 

If  we  recall  to  mind  numerous  home  industries  only  a  few 
generations  back,  for  instance  the  flax  grown  on  the  family 
field,  woven  on  the  family  heirloom,  and  taken  to  market 
periodically  to  be  sold,  we  wonder  at  the  slow,  tedious, 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALI 


penny-wise  business,  that  aimed  to  do  all  the  work,  but 
earned  little.  Mills  now  buy  the  flax,  and  sell  the  linen  to 
the  dealers.  All  other  industries  were  remodelled  in  the 
same  manner;  producers,  manufacturers  and  dealers  are  dis- 
tinctly separated  to  make  them  pay  ;  and  still  we  see  wine 
men  adhere  to  the  primitive  policy  in  wine  making.  As  long 
as  wines  had  to  be  stored  several  years  to  be  ready  for  ship- 
ping, the  excuse  was  not  unfounded  that  the  investments  of 
distinct  establishments  were  enormous.  Air  treatment,  how- 
ever, annihilates  this  objection,  permits  the  cellar  to  be 
cleared  a  few  months  after  the  vintage,  to  be  ready  for  next 
season.  Central  wine  houses  in  grape-growing  districts  are 
bound  to  be  profitable,  to  take  the  place  of  the  numerous 
press  houses,  purchase  grapes  by  contract  for  years  ahead, 
and  a  few  months  after  vintage  turn  over  their  ripe,  matured 
product  to  the  dealers.  Large  establishments  work  cheaper, 
can  have  more  intelligent  and  competent  supervision,  have  a 
choice  of  numerous  varieties  of  grapes,  to  blend  and  produce 
choicer  wines  than  the  small  producer  can,  and  make  busi- 
ness easier,  more  agreeable  and  more  profitable  on  all  sides, 
by  yielding  quick  returns  to  all  parties  interested.  The 
American  wine  industry  can  only  prosper,  by  employing 
quick  ripening  methods  in  manufacture,  and  division  of 
labor  as  indicated. 

SHIPPING    GRAPES. 

Grapes  more  qualified  for  the  table  are  produced  in  large 
quantities  and  offer  better  remuneration  to  the  growers  to 
ship  to  distant  markets  than  to  the  press  house.  A  great 
deal,  however,  is  now  spoiled  in  transportation  and  storing. 
It  behooves  us  ro  reduce  the  loss  to  the  lowest  figure. 
Everybody  has  observed  that  confined  air  favors  and  quick- 
ens decay;  that  currents  of  air  preserve.  This  demonstrates 
the  benefits  of  air  treatment  without  direct  oxidizing  action 
in  the  gluten.  Through  the  compartments  of  the  railroad 


298  GB  VPE  CULTURE  AND 

car,  the  storehouses  or  vessels,  currents  of  air  are  directed 
with  occasionally  the  vapors  of  a  little  burnt  sulphur,  or 
other  disinfectants,  are  employed  with  air  to  destroy  the 
germs  of  mould  or  decay  that  may  have  found  their  way  or 
even  have  attacked  to  the  grapes  or  other  produce. 

A  blower,  run  by  hand  or  power,  furnishes  air  or  other 
gasses  to  a  system  of  pipes  at  the  bottom  of  the  compart- 
ments, and  the  air,  after  it  circulates  over  the  objects  in  the 
compartments  ('a  number  of  which  can  be  operated  in  turns) 
is  allowed  to  escape  by  flues,  or  by  these  may  return  to  the 
blower,  to  repeat  its  action.  All  kinds  of  fruit,  produce  or 
meal  can  be  preserved  for  a  long  time,  at  any  season  of  the 
year;  which  permits  an  exchange  of  the  products  of  our 
country,  aye,  of  the  globe,  heretofore  unattainable: 

CONCENTRATED      PRESERVES. 

The  preparation  of  juices  or  extracts,  purified  by  air  treat- 
ment and  concentrated,  was  alluded  to  under  sweet  wines. 
Many  thousand  tons  of  fruit  will  annually  find  their  way  into 
the  markets  in  this  condensed  shape,  and  with  great  benefit 
to  all  concerned,  while  in  the  distructable  green  state  they 
would  have  remained  almost  worthless.  The  aromatic,  fruity 
flavors  are  mostly  retained  by  conducting  the  process  of  puri- 
fication and  concentration  at  a  heat  not  exceeding  140  to 
150°  F.  There  is  no  necessity  to  put  up  these  articles  in 
air-tight,  hermetically  sealed  jars  or  cans;  barrels  answer 
the  purpose.  Nor  need  those  alkaline  powders  and  lyes, 
under  the  name  of  preserving  powders  or  fluids  (every  one  of 
them  detrimental  to  the  digestion  of  the  consumer)  be  added 
to  the  air-purified  preserves  ;  their  keeping  qualities  are  se- 
cured by  deglutination.  It  will  be  borne  in  mind  that  the 
object  in  employing  the  aforesaid  injurious  adulterations,  is 
to  neutralize  an  acid  action  for  some  time,  by  which  alone 
fermentation  or  putrefaction  can  take  place.  Glycerine,  oil 
or  hops,  or  other  essential  oils,  even  sugar,  salt,  alcohol,  etc., 


WINE-MAKING    IN  CALIFORNIA.  299 

are  employed  for  the  same  purpose;  that  is  to  act,  for  the 
time  being  in  the  capacity  of  an  alkaloid,  and  to  retard  or 
prevent  impending  changes.  The  mere  mention  makes  it 
plain,  that  innumerable  articles  could  be  reduced  to  the 
fluid,  syrupy  or  solid  state  in  the  manner  described,  for  the 
sake  of  economy,  to  prevent  loss  by  spoiling  in  transporta- 
tion or  storing,  to  reduce  the  freight  by  decreasing  the  bulk, 
and  to  return  the  refuse  to  the  soil  as  manure,  after  it  served 
as  food  for  animals.  All  this,  and  much  more,  will  be  gen- 
erally adopted  before  many  years  pass  by. 

RETROSPECT. 

The  foregoing  attempt  to  demonstrate  the  importance  of  air 
treatment  for  the  American  wine  industry,  and  to  foreshadow 
some  of  the  changes  which  it  is  bound  to  effect;  equal 
changes  by  the  same  powerful  agent,  the  support  of  all  organ- 
ism, are  certain  in  numerous  other  industries.  The  revolu- 
tion worked  by  Besseniers  air  process  in  the  manufacture  of 
iron  and  steel,  is  but  the  forerunner  in  the  manufac- 
ture of  organic  substances  of  almost  any  kind  by  air  treat- 
ment, a  revolution,  however,  pregnant  only  of  unalloyed 
benefits  to  the  whole  human  family.  In  this  progressive 
spirit  I  hope  it  will  be  received  by  those  millions  whose 
health  it  will  secure,  and  whose  labors  it  shall  lighten,  be  it 
in  wine  making,  brewing,  malting,  distilling,  sugar  or  oil 
making,  tanning,  or  the  manufacture  of  extracts,  transporta- 
tion or  storing,  the  purification  of  spirits  from  noxious  fusil 
oils,  or  of  plain  drinking  water  from  organic  contaminations. 

To  prevent  misconstruction  it  should  be  stated  that  the 
inventor  of  air  treatment  is  far  from  considering  the  details, 
as  here  described,  rigid  rules  for  all  cases  alike;  but  mere  de- 
tails, which,  according  to  the  species  of  must,  treated  in  the 
hands  of  intelligent  experts,  will  give  satisfactory  results. 
For  instance,  when  a  few  weeks  more  time  for  fermentation  is 
no  object,  one  vigorous  air  treatment  of  the  must  for  one  half 


300  GKAPE  CULTURE  AND 

or  one  hour  at  60 3  F.,  previous  to  fermentation,  may  answer; 
in  other  cases,  one  fourth  to  one  half  hour  preliminary  vigorous 
action,  and  subsequent  gentle  treatments  during  fermentation, 
several  times  for  one  or  two  days,  or  once  every  day,  may  do 
the  work.  It  must  necessarily  be  left  to  the  discretion  of 
those  qualified  to  do  the  work,  and  inclined  to  systematical 
experiments,  to  ascertain  the  best  modes  applicable  to  the 
varying  conditions  that  exert  their  influences  during  fermenta- 
tion. It  seems  essential  to  accelerate  the  fermentation,  so  a 
to  earn-  the  musts  as  quickly  as  possible  through  the  fermenting 
rooms,  which  are  frequently  but  poorly  protected  against  cold, 
generally  not  arranged  for  heating,  and  of  limited  capacity. 
Proper  air  treatment  performs  this;  abler  men  may  develop 
more. 

R.  D'HEUREUSE. 

The  last  remarks  were  evidently  written  as  applicable  to  the 
Eastern  industry.  Here  we  have  to  guard  more  against  ex- 
cessive heat  during  fermentation  than  against  cold.  It  will 
be  easy  for  the  intelligent  reader  to  form  his  own  conclusions, 
and  vary  his  practice  accordingly.  Aeration,  no  matter  by 
what  means,  or  how  applied,  underlies  all  sound  fermenta- 
tion, and  while  we  must  aerate  our  must  during  fermentation 
to  bring  about  a  perfect  fermentation,  and  deposit  the  gluten 
and  albumenous  substances,  we  must  also  exclude  the  air,  as 
near  as  possible,  as  soon  as  the  wine  is  thoroughly  fermented 
and  finished.  I  cannot  think  of  any  better  simile  to  illustrate 
this,  than  to  compare  the  must  to  a  living  organism,  constant- 
ly omitting  and  exhaling  noxious  substances.  When  it  has 
become  wine,  it  inhales ;  and  is  apt  to  be  affected  by  all  out- 
ward influences.  There  is  no  absolute  period  of  quietude, 
but  a  constant  change  for  better  or  worse,  according  to  the 
treatment  it  receives  ;  so  it  behooves  us  to  see  that  we  treat  it 
well.  In  this  climate,  we  need  not  resort  to  the  practices  of 
Dr.  Gall,  and  Petiot,  so  necessary  in  Europe  and  even  in  the 


WINE-MAKIN<;  IN  CALIFORNIA.  301 

East.  Our  genial  climate  will  give  us  a  must,  rich  enough  in 
sugar,  and  light  enough  in  acid,  to  make  a  good,  saleable 
wine  every  season,  and  it  would  be  foolish  indeed  to  resort  to 
additions  of  sugar  when  the  pure  grape  must  is  so  much 
cheaper.  While  I  think  the  practice  of  using  pure  grape 
sugar  is  perfectly  harmless  in  Europe  and  the  East,  and  even 
necessary  to  make  a  good,  sound  wine,  to  use  it  here  would 
be  folly,  as  we  can  make  it  without  such  additions,  and  fur- 
nish a  cheaper  and  better  article  thereby.  Here  again,  Cali- 
fornia can  excel  the  world. 

DEFECTIVE    FERMENTATION". 

It  is  or  rather  has  been,  frequently  the  case  in  this  State 
especially  in  some  seasons,  when  the  summers  were  extraor- 
dinarily dry,  followed  by  very  hot  weather  during  the  vintage, 
that  wines,  especially  the  red,  were  "stuck"  as  the  common 
expression  is  during  fermentation;  that  is,  fermentation  set  in 
very  violently,  running  up  the  temperature  in  the  fermenting 
tanks  to  over  a  hundred  degrees,  then  suddenly  stopped, 
when  the  must  yet  retained  from  three  to  eight  per  cent,  of 
free  sugar.  In  1885,  this  was  especially  the  case,  and  per- 
haps one-sixth  of  all  the  wines  in  certain  sections  did  not 
"go  through"  as  the  common  expression  is. 

The  cause  of  this  can  perhaps  be  found  in  the  long  period 
of  drought,  when  the  grapes  at  last  ripened  suddenly  and 
rather  unnaturally,  with  many  shrivelled  berries,  especially  in 
the  Zinfandel.  The  product  was  sluggish,  and  the  fermen- 
tation properties  not  sufficiently  active  to  carry  fermentation 
through  evenly  and  correctly.  Add  to  this  very  hot  weather, 
and  the  mistaken  idea  which  seemed  to  prevail,  that  the 
most  rapid  fermentation  was  also  the  most  thorough.  The 
mash,  generally  confined  under  the  abominable  perforated 
head?,  or  still  worse,  left  exposed  without  stirring,  rapidly 
rose  to  a  degree  of  heat  above,  which  amounted  to  more 
than  boiling,  killed  the  germs  of  fermentation,  and  turned 


302  <^RAPE  CULTURE  AND 

the  sugar  into  caramel,  insoluble  in  fermentation.  The  lower 
part  of  the  tank  was  far  below  the  upper  in  temperature,  air 
was  entirely  excluded,  and  the  result  was  wine  which  obstin- 
ately remained  sweet.  I  may  state  with  some  gratification 
and  pride,  that  under  my  method  of  frequent  stirring,  aera- 
tion and  keeping  the  temperature  even  from  top  to  bottom,  I 
did  not  have  a  single  case  of  imperfect  fermentation,  and  pro- 
duced as  good  wines  as  any  in  the  market,  sound  and  well 
fermented. 

The  reader  will  perceive,  that  in  this  case,  as  in  most 
others,  an  ounce  of  preventative  is  better  than  a  pound  of 
cure.  The  most  simple  means  to  prevent  such  occurrences 
are  the  following: 

1.  Do  not  let  your  grapes  get  over  ripe,  but  pick    them 
when  they  show  from  22  to  24°  on  Balling's  scale. 

2.  Have  an  even  temperature  from  65  to  75,  not  exceed- 
ing 80  in  your  fermenting  room. 

3.  If  the  grapes  come   in    too  hot,  let   them  stand    over 
night,  and  crush  in  the  morning,  when  cool. 

4.  In  fermenting,  stir  frequently  and  thoroughly,  so  as  to 
aerate  the  whole  mass,  and  equalize  the  temperature. 

5.  Should  you  not  be    able    to  work    your  grapes    quick 
enough,  and  they  run  over  25°,  reduce  to  25  by  an  addition 
of  water  to  the  mash,  before  fermenting. 

If  you  observe  all  these  simple  rules,  you  will  have  no 
trouble  in  fermentation. 

But  if,  by  some  oversight  or  other,  a  cask  or  tank  should 
get  "stuck,"  or  refuse  to  go  through,  the  simplest  remedy  is 
to  take  fresh  grapes  of  certain  light  varieties,  for  instance 
Burger  or  second  crop  Zinfandel,  crush  them,  and  throw  the 
refractory  must  over  them  without  delay,  taking  care  to  mix 
it  thoroughly  with  the  fresh  grapes.  This  will  incite  fresh 
fermentation,  and  if  you  work  the  whole  mass  thoroughly,  or 
aerate  it,  they  will  generally  "go  through"  without  trouble. 


WINE-MAKING    IN   CALIFORNIA.  303 

This  is  better  than  all  the  remedies  suggested  by  wine  doc- 
tors: brewers'  yeast,  flour,  tartaric  acid,  plaster  and  tannin; 
and  will  give  a  better  and  more  natural  wine  than  any  of  them. 

But  you  need  not  fear  if  you  observe  the  above  rules, 
that  such  will  be  the  case,  unless  you  are  entirely  unable  to 
regulate  the  temperature  of  your  winery.  If  this  is  the  case, 
remedy  the  defect  in  some  way  or  other  before  the  next 
vintage  is  upon  you.  In  six  successive  seasons,  in  which  I 
have  made  wine  in  this  State,  I  have  not  had  a  single  case  of 
imperfect  fermentation  yet,  nor  need  my  readers  have  it,  if 
they  will  work  rationally  and  carefully. 

Since  writing  the  above,  over  two  months  ago,  another 
season  of  difficult  fermentation  has  passed,  and  millions  of 
gallons  of  wine  have  obstinately  remained  sweet.  While  I 
have  nothing  further  to  add  to  the  advice  already  given,  the 
account  of  experiments  by  Prof.  Hilgard,  given  below,  will 
fully  confirm  the  views  given,  and  serve  to  throw  much  addi- 
tional light  on  this  important  subject. 

Complaints  of  difficult  fermentations  have  .been  very  gen- 
eral during  the  vintage  just  passed,  and  a  great  deal  of  red 
wine  especially  has  refused  to  "go  dry"  within  the  usual  or 
any  reasonable  limit  of  time.  It  has  long  been  my  convic- 
tion that  in  the  vast  majority  of  cases  the  difficulties  com- 
plained of  arise  from  excessive  heat  during  and  particularly  at 
the  beginning  of  fermentation.  At  the  end  of  last  year's 
vintage,  a  number  of  comparative  fermentations  were  made 
at  the  University  Viticultural  Laboratory,  partly  with  a  view 
to  testing  this  question;  but  it  being  late  in  the  season,  the 
only  grapes  available  for  the  purpose,  viz:  second-crop  Zin- 
fandel,  were  not  of  a  character  to  test  the  point,  having  high 
acid  (.65)  and  low  sugar  (21.6);  and  the  high  temperature 
attained  seemed  to  accelerate,  rather  than  retard,  the  ferment- 
ing process.  This  season,  sixteen  fermentation  experiments, 
parallel  with  those  of  last  year,  have  been  made,  and  the  re- 

20 


304  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

suits  of  some  of  these  throw  so  much  light  upon  the  causes 
of  "difficult  fermentations"  that  it  seems  proper  to  give 
publicity  to  them  in  advance  of  any  detailed  report  on  the 
whole  series. 

Equal  charges  of  200  pounds  each  were  fermented  in  50- 
gallon  tanks,  save  that  in  the  hot  fermentations  25  pounds 
more  were  used,  in  order  that  the  rise  of  temperature  might 
be  favored  by  greater  mass.  In  the  hot  chamber  a  tempera- 
ture of  between  85°  and  90°  was  maintained  ;  while  in  the 
fermenting-room  in  which  the  other  charges  were  being  treated, 
the  temperature  was  kept  as  nearly  as  possible  at  75°.  The 
grape  employed  was  a  fine  lot  of  Carignane,  courteously  do- 
nated for  the  purpose  by  A.  J.  Salazar,  Jr.,  of  Mission  San 
Jose.  The  must  showed  25.75  per  cent,  by  spindle  and  53 
per  cent,  or  a  little  over  h\e  pro  niille,  of  acid. 

Of  the  tanks  in  the  fermenting-room  filled  with  mash  at 
63°,  three,  treated  by  usual  methods,  went  practically  dry 
and  were  sent  to  press  on  the  seventh  day  ;  the  first  to  finish 
being  the  one  with  "floating  cover  and  twice-daily  stirring," 
the  method  adopted  in  the  laboratory  for  general  purposes. 
The  highest  temperature  reached  by  any  of  these  was  95°. 

On  that  day  (7th)  the  two  tanks  in  the  hot  chamber,  which 
had  in  setting  been  warmed  up  to  86U  and  at  first  fermented 
most  violently,  and  in  forty-three  hours  attained  a  maximum 
temperature  of  106°,  had  come  down  to  very  slow  movement; 
the  actual  solid  contents  were  found  to  be  a  little  over  12  per 
cent.-  It  being  obvious  that  they  would  not  "go  through" 
under  existing  conditions,  the  two  charges  were  divided  into 
four  parts,  of  which  one  was  left  in  the  hot  chamber  and 
treated  as  before,  in  order  to  observe  the  outcome.  The 
others  served  for  experiments  to  test  the  best  mode  of  reviv- 
ing the  fermentation  in  the  lower  temperature  of  the  ferment- 
ing room. 

One    portion  received   1^/2   per  cent,    of   pomace,  freshly 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  305 

pressed  from  one  of  the  other  tanks,  and  well  stirred  in  ; 
floating  cover  put  on  and  well  stirred  three  times  daily.  Fer- 
mentation soon  revived  and  went  on  slowly,  but  steadily, 
until  the  seventh  day,  when  the  charge  was  sent  to  press, 
practically  dry. 

One,  a  double  portion  of  191/2  gallons,  was  mixed  with  2^/2 
gallons  of  condensed  Zinfandel  must  set  at  21  per  cent,  with 
distilled  water,  and  having  been  allowed  to  pass  into  active 
fermentation  before  mixing  with  the  "stuck"  mash.  Fer- 
mentation soon  set  in  and  slowly  but  steadily  carried  it  to 
dryness  on  the  iyth  day,  being  8  days  from  the  time  the  fresh 
must  was  added. 

The  fourth  portion  was  left  without  any  addition  but  was 
from  the  time  it  left  the  hot  chamber  vigorously  aerated,  by 
means  of  an  air  pump  three  times  a  day.  Fermentation  soon 
revived,  and  the  charge  went  dry  and  was  sent  to  press  at  the 
end  of  the  6th  day,  from  the  time  it  was  removed  from  the 
hot  chamber,  being  nearly  two  days  in  advance  of  the  other 
tanks  treated  with  pomace  and  must  respectively,  but  aerated 
only  by  ordinary  "  foulage/'  with  cross-peg  stirrer. 

It  thus  appears  that  simple  aeration,  without  the  addition 
of  any  new  yeast,  was  at  that  stage  of  the  mash  that  had 
"stuck"  in  consequence  of  overheating,  the  most  effectual 
mode  of  reviving  and  completing  the  fermentation.  The 
pressed  wine  had  the  same  acid  percentage  as  the  original 
must,  and  is  free  from  acetic  taint. 

As  for  the  portion  that  remained  in  the  hot  chamber,  it 
continued  a  feeble  action  for  some  time,  but  on  the  fourteenth 
day  from  the  setting  of  the  mash  it  had  practically  stopped. 
It  was  then  removed  to  the  fermenting-room,  and  after  cool- 
ing down  to  75°  and  aerating  by  the  pump,  a  faint  revival  of 
fermentation  took  place  for  thirty-six  hours.  Then  the  cap 
sank  and  the  tank  was  "dead."  The  day  after,  the  odor 
and  taste  of  milk-sourness  became  so  patent  that  the  mess 


306  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

was  sent  to  press  with  over  9  per  cent,  of  solids,  as  a  dead 
failure,  on  the  seventeenth  day  ;  a  vvoful,  but  in  practice  but 
too  familiar  example  of  the  results  of  hot  fermentations. 

I  reserve  for  the  future  a  detailed  discussion  of  the  subject, 
in  connection  with  other  experiments,  but  the  main  points 
illustrated  may  be  briefly  thus  stated  : 

1.  While   musts   of  low  sugar  contents  and  high  acid  may 
be  successsully  rushed  through  to  dryness  at  a  high  tempera- 
ture and  make  a  sound  wine,   the  same  is  not  true  of  those 
having  -high  sugar  and  low  acid  ;  the  margin  of  difference  be- 
tween the  two  cases  is  a  very  narrow  one,  both  as  to  temper- 
ature, acid,  and  sugar,  and  hence  a  few  days  of  hot  "norther" 
may  easily  turn  the  scale. 

2.  When  the  temperature  has   not  been  excessively  high 
and  not  maintained  too  long,  simple  aeration  by  means  of  a 
pump  or  blower  may  revive  it  at  a  lower  temperature.    Sound 
pomace,  or  fresh  fermenting  must,  are  additions  to  be  used 
when  available  or  necessary. 

While  these  facts  and  principles  are  not  new  to  experts,  I 
have  thought  it  worth  while  to  re-establish  them  by  facts  and 
figures,  and  to  offer  them  as  a  substitute  for  the  supposed 
mysteries  of  "difficult  fermentations"  that  have  so  vexed 
our  winemakers.  The  vatting  of  hot  and  over  ripe  grapes 
and  the  omission  of  proper  aeration  of  the  mass,  while  allow- 
ing the  surface  to  acetify,  are  responsible  for  nine-tenths  of 
all  unsoundness  in  California  wines. 

E.     W.    HlLGARD. 

BERKELEY,  November,  17,  1887. 

(d)       LIQUEUR  WINES  OR  SWEET  WINES.       CHAMPAGNE. 

This  may  be  said  to  comprise  all  the  sweet  wines,  also  for- 
tified wines.  These  may  be  made  naturally,  by  leaving  the 
grapes  on  the  vines  until  over  ripe,  when,  if  the  must  is  over 
28°  Balling,  it  is  apt  to  retain  part  of  the  sugar  unfermented. 


WINE-MAKING   IN   CALIFORNIA.  307 

This  is  done  in  Europe  in  several  ways,  either  by  letting  the 
grapes  hang  on  the  vines  until  very  ripe,  and  the  small  ber- 
ries are  half  dried,  in  some  cases  even  picking  out  the  ripe 
berries  with  needles,  and  then  exposing  them  to  the  sun  for 
several  days,  upon  screens,  or  straw;  they  are  then  crushed 
and  pressed.  The  must  of  course,  being  so  very  rich  and 
syrupy,  will  take  a  long  time  to  ferment  and  develop,  longer, 
very  likely,  than  our  impatient  people  would  be  willing  to 
wait  for  them.  It  is  in  this  manner  that  the  celebrated 
Tokay  is  made  in  Hungary. 

As  I  have  never  had  much  to  do  with  making  sweet  or 
fortified  wines,  I  shall  not  go  into  any  very  elaborate  de- 
scriptions of  the  process,  which  come  hardly  within  the 
province  of  the  smaller  wine  producer,  for  whom  this  book  is 
calculated.  I  shall  only  refer  to  the  methods  in  a  general 
way,  especially  as  I  do  not  profess  to  be  a  judge  of  these 
wines,  nor  partial  to  them.  In  fact,  I  do  not  consider  them 
wines,  in  the  true  sense  of  the  word,  which  with  me  is  the 
pure,  fermented  juice  of  the  grape.  But  as  they  are  con- 
sumed to  a  large  extent,  I  do  not  feel  justified  in  omitting 
them  altogether,  leaving  my  readers  to  inform  themselves  if 
they  wish  to  make  them,  from  a  more  competent  source  than 
I  claim  to  be. 

Angelica  or  Sweet  Muscatel!.  This  is  generally  made 
from  Muscat  of  Alexandria,  by  letting  the  grapes  get  very 
ripe,  then  crushing  and  pressing  them,  and  as  soon  as  this  is 
done,  add  about  a  quart  of  grape  brandy  of  the  usual  strength 
to  each  gallon  of  must,  also  stirring  in  about  a  gallon  of 
fresh  lime  to  each  100  gallons  of  the  must.  This  suppresses 
fermentation,  and  clarifies  the  wine  within  two  days.  As 
soon  as  it  is  clear,  it  is  drawn  off  into  casks,  which  are  filled; 
and  only  needs  ageing  to  make  it  more  palatable.  The 
•German  Muscateller  or  Frontignau,  if  treated  similarly, 
will  make  a  much  more  delicately  flavored  wine,  and  it 


308  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

• 

is  from  this  grape  the  French  make  their  celebrated 
Muscat  Lunel,  which  sells  at  $3.00  per  bottle.  We 
would  hardly  obtain  such  prices  here,  however,  even  if  we 
made  it  better,  for  it  would  not  be  French.,  nor  "far  fetched 
and  dear  bought!"  Yet  it  deserves  a  trial,  and  very  fine 
wines  of  a  similar  character  have  already  been  produced  here. 

Sherries  and  Ports  are  generally  made  by  fortifying  with  al- 
cohol up  to  eighteen  to  twenty-three  per  cent.  Mr.  Crabb 
adds  grape  syrup  to  his  port,  made  by  boiling  down  sweet 
must.  Sherries  are  then  kept  in  a  heated  room  with  a  tem- 
perature of  140  to  150  F.,  for  three  to  four  months,  a  so- 
called  oven;  and  thus  acquire  the  aged  taste  and  flavor  which 
their  admirers  fancy.  It  would  not  be  of  any  special  interest 
to  the  reader  to  enter  into  a  description  of  the  Bodega  and 
Solera  system,  by  which  sherries  and  ports  are  made  and  aged 
in  Spain  and  Portugal,  as  I  do  not  think  that  Californians  will 
ever  be  willing  to  wait  ten  years  before  they  can  thus  ripen 
and  sell  their  wines,  and  go  into  the  tedious  process  of  estab- 
lishing them.  I  believe,  however,  that  there  are  many  of  our 
grapes  which  acquire  the  sherry  flavor  simply  by  aging  in  the 
cask.  I  have  tasted  Mission  at  Mr.  Dresels  twenty  years  old 
which  had  it  in  a  marked  degree,  and  which  I  would  prefer 
to  most  of  the  artificially  made  sherries  I  have  tried.  This 
is  especially  the  case  with  many  of  our  white  wine  varieties 
when  they  get  very  ripe.  The  Sultana,  for  instance,  develops 
some  of  it  even  the  second  and  third  season,  and  it  may  thus 
not  be  difficult  to  produce  a  natural  sherry,  preferable  to  the 
artificial,  by  simply  aging  the  wine  of  such  varieties,  which 
would  seem  to  me  to  be  a  more  proper  and  cleaner  way  than 
exposing  them  to  the  influence  of  air  and  mold,  by  leaving 
them  in  casks  partly  full  and  with  their  bungs  open,  as  in 
Europe. 

Champagne  or  Sparkling  Wine.  There  are  also  two  meth- 
ods to  produce  this,  the  so-called  natural  wray,  by  which  car- 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  309 

bonic  acid  gas  is  developed  in  the  bottle  by  adding  syrup  and 
aging  it,  and  the  artificial,  by  which  the  wine  is  impregnated 
with  it  in  about  the  same  manner  as  soda  or  other  artificial 
mineral  waters.  Mr.  Arpad  Harazthy,  I  think,  is  the  only 
one  who  now  follows  the  first  in  this  State,  his  "Eclipse  "  is 
well  known  and  generally  well  received  by  the  people,  al- 
though many  assert  that  the  artificial  is  just  as  good  and  pure. 
I  can  really  not  see  where  the  great  difference  is,  as  in  both 
cases  the  "liquor"  is  added  artificially,  and  both  are  certain- 
ly not  pure  wines,  according  to  the  true  definition  of  the  word. 
As  long  as  they  contain  nothing  deleterious  to  health,  and 
the  people  enjoy  them  and  are  willing  to  consume  and  pay  for 
them,  they  are  a  legitimate  branch  of  our  wine  industry,  and 
should  be  protected  and  fostered  as  such,  whether  made  in 
theso-called  natural  way,  and  sold  at  sixteen  dollars  pefcase, 
or  in  the  artificial,  and  sold  at  ten  dollars.  There  are  several 
firms  engaged  in  making  the  latter  to  a  certain  extent  in  this 
State,  and  Mr.  Werner  of  New  York  City  is  mauufacturing  it 
there  from  California  wine,  which  is  reshipped,  and  consumed 
here  to  some  extent. 

Grape  Milk.  The  same  firm  has  also  put  an  article  on  the 
market  which  is  called  Grape  Milk.  This  is  simply  must  in 
which  fermentation  has  been  suppressed  by  a  process  best 
known  to  himself,  and  which  is  sold  for  commercial  and  other 
purposes,  to  those  who  think  it  inconsistent  with  temperance 
and  Christianity  to  use  the  fermented  juice  of  the  grape. 
There  are  many  methods  of  suppressing  fermentation  in  must; 
sulphuring,  adding  salycilic  acid,  etc.,  but  I  do  not  think 
any  of  them  entirely  harmless,  and  all  more  or  less  injurious 
to  health.  I  believe  if  He,  whose  followers  these  men  and 
women  profess  to  be,  saw  any  harm  in  the  moderate  use  of 
pure  wine,  He  would  not  have  changed  water  into  this  bev- 
erage, of  which  the  master  of  the  feast  said  that  the  best  had 
been  kept  to  the  last,  nor  would  He  have  instituted  it  as  one 


310  GRAPE   CULTURE   AND 

of  the  Sacraments  at  the  last  supper  He  took  with  his  follow- 
ers. I  do  not  think  that  what  was  pure  to  Him,  the  purest  of 
all,  can  be  impure  to  us,  who  feebly  try  to  follow  in  His  foot- 
steps, provided  we  use  it  with  moderation,  as  it  should  be 
taken. 


CHAPTER    VI. 

AFTER    TREATMENT    OF    THE    YOUNG    WINE.        RACKING. 

As  soon  as  the  must  has  fully  gone  through  fermentation, 
and  has  become  perfectly  quiet,  we  call  it  wine.  In  short,  as 
soon  as  fermentation  has  converted  the  sugar  into  alcohol,  the 
must  has  lost  its  sweet  and  pungent  taste  on  the  tongue,  and 
is  beginning  to  deposit  its  lees,  instead  of  throwing  them  to 
the  surface,  as  it  does  while  fermenting,  it  may  be  called  wine. 
The  plainest  indication  of  this  stage  is,  when,  in  holding  your 
ear  over  the  bung  hole  of  the  cask  or  tank,  you  hear  none  of 
that  hissing  noise  which  accompanies  fermentation;  and  the 
wine,  by  drawing  a  sample  from  the  top,  which  can  easily  be 
done  with  a  small  hose,  or  a  liquor  thief,  does  not  produce 
that  pungent,  prickly  taste  which  characterizes  it  while  fer- 
menting. It  is  time  then  to  close  the  bung,  driving  it  in 
lightly,  however;  in  case  any  after  fermentation  should  set  in, 
which  might  injure  the  cask.  In  a  week  or  so  more,  it  can 
be  driven  in  tight,  so  as  to  exclude  the  air.  But  before  this 
is  done,  it  will  be  well  to  fill  up  with  the  must  separately  fer- 
mented for  that  purpose.  Fill  the  cask  up  to  the  bung,  either 
with  the  wooden  funnel,  or  a  can  with  a  long  pipe,  bent  at  the 
end  and  made  specially  for  that  purpose.  (Fig. 


WINE-MAKING    IN   CALIFORNIA.  311 


FlG.  31  4. 

If  the  wine  is  yet  in  the  fermenting  room,  it  can  be  drawn 
off  and  removed  to  the  cellar  proper,  for  further  development; 
although,  if  well  and  fully  fermented,  it  will  be  perfectly  safe 
in  the  fermenting  room.  This  first  racking,  however,  had 
better  be  deferred  until  it  has  become  clear,  and  deposited 
most  of  the  lees  at  the  bottom  of  the  cask,  which  is  seldom 
the  case  before  two  months.  The  old  idea  that  the  lees  were 
the  "  mother  of  the  wine,"  and  necessary  to  it  until  February 
and  March,  is  fully  exploded  now.  The  lees  are  nothing  but 
the  excrements  of  the  wine,  the  impurities  contained  in  the 
must,  which  fall  to  the  bottom  and  are  deposited  there.  As 
soon  as  this  has  been  done,  the  wine  will  gain  nothing  by  re- 
maining on  them;  on  the  contrary,  the  sooner  it  is  taken 
from  them,  the  better  for  it. 

But  no  -matter  whether  on  the  lees  or  off,  the  casks  should 
be  kept  full;  and  it  is  necessary  that  this  be  done  once  a 
week;  from  a  small  cask  kept  for  the  purpose.  It  is  not 
necessary,  however,  if  the  casks  have  been  filled  up  once, 
that  this  be  done  with  the  same  variety  of  wine.  Any  good, 
sound  white  wine  will  do  to  fill  up  all  the  white  wines;  and 
one  also  for  the  red.  Of  course  it  would  not  do  to  fill  white 
wines  with  red,  as  t'hat  would  have  a  tendency  to  color  them; 
but  if  the  red  wines  have  color  sufficient,  a  filling  up  with 
white  wines  will  do  no  harm,  but  rather  give  them  finish  and 
smoothness. 

If  the  wines  are  kept  in  tight  casks,  have  sufficient  alcoholic 
strength,  and  filled  up  every  week,  there  is  not  much  danger 


312  GRAPE   CULTURE   AND 

of  mould;  or  as  some  call  it,  very  inappropriately,  ftowers  on 
the  wine.  Should  it  however  happen,  that  the  young  wine 
shows  a  white  film  on  top,  fill  the  cask  so  full  that  this  film  or 
mould  which  floats  on  the  surface,  runs  out  at  the  bung,  and 
after  it  has  all  run.out,  bung  tight. 

RACKING. 

As  soon  as  the  young  wine  is  clear,  it  can,  and  in  fact, 
ought  to  be  racked.  For  this  purpose  we  need  a.  a  clean 
cask  of  about  the  same  dimensions  as  the  one  you  wish  to 
commence  with.  b.  Faucet  of  sufficient  dimensions,  c.  A 
small  tub  to  put  under  the  cask  and  faucet,  d.  Either  a 
pump  or  buckets  to  transfer  the  wine  into  the  empty  cask. 
/.  If  the  latter,  the  wooden  funnell  referred  to  before.  If  the 
former,  sufficient  hose  to  reach  from  faucet  to  pump,  and 
from  pump  to  cask.  Of  course  the  empty  cask  must  be  clean, 
sweet  and  tight,  is  placed  where  the  wine  is  to  remain  until 
racked  again,  and  is  laid  on  the  supports  so  that  the  front  end 
with  the  hole  for  tapping  is,  say  two  inches,  lower  than  the 
end  next  to  the  wall. 

Some  rack  through  a  siphon  (Fig.  33)  from  the  bung  hole, 
but  I  prefer  the  faucet ;  as  the 
hole  for  it  is  just  about,  or  ought  to 
be,  where  the  lees  commence,  and 
the  bottom  of  the  clear  wine,  which 
cannot  be  so  accurately  guaged 
with  the  siphon,  and  therefore  is 
FIG.  33.  more  apt  to  disturb  the  sediment. 

For  racking  large  casks,  it  is  also  well  to  have  a  jack,  (Fig. 
34)  to  raise  the  cask  when  it  has  run  down  to  the  level  of  the 
faucet.  Now,  the  cask  being  in  position,  we  are  ready  for 
the  operation.  Loosen  the  bung  first,  by  a  tap  or  two  with 
the  mallet,  for,  if  this  is  not  done,  the  air  entering  at  the 
top  or  faucet  hole,  will  disturb  the  lees.  -Then  take  the 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  313 

faucet  in  your  'left  hand,  a  bucket  or  tub  between  your 
knees  to  receive  the  wine  which  may  spurt  out,  loosen  the 
plug  with  the  mallet,  until  you  can  draw  it 
with  your  hand,  and  as  soon  as  you  -withdraw 
the  plug  insert  the  faucet,  which  of  course 
should  be  closed,  and  drive  it  in  firmly  with 
the  mallet.  Now  have  a  glass  handy,  and  try 
whether  the  wine  runs  clear  and  limpid.  If 
not,  open  the  faucet  only  about  half  way,  and 
let  the  wine  run  slowly,  testing  it  from  time  to 
time  until  it  comes  clear.  Then  shut  the  fau- 
cet, and  put  the  turbid  wine  separately  into  a 
cask  or  keg.  It  will  soon  clear,  and  can  then 
be  drawn  off  again. 

If  you  rack  with  buckets  or  cans,  it  is  a  good  practice  for 
very  young  wine  to  open  the  faucet  but  partially,  so  that  the 
wine  comes  in  a  spray  or  circle.  It  is  thus  somewhat  aerated, 
and  the  oxygen  will  help  the  final  clarification  and  tend  to 
ripen  it  sooner.  Avoid  as  much  as  possible  to  shut  the  fau- 
cet suddenly,  the  check  is  apt  to  disturb  the  wine,  but  have 
two  buckets  or  cans,  slipping  the  empty  one  under  the  faucet 
and  removing  the  full  one.  A  little  practice  will  soon  give 
the  necessary  dexterity.  If  the  cask  is  high,  you  want  an 
assistant  to  empty  the  cans  into  the  funnel. 

Pumps  are  much  more  convenient  and  not  very  costly. 
The  accompaning  cut  shows  a  very  convenient  pump,  to  be 
had  at  Woodin  &  Little,  San  Francisco,  and  the  manner  in 
which  they  are  operated.  They  save  a  great  deal  of  labor, 
and  for  operations  at  all  extensive,  will  pay  for  themselves  in 
a  very  short  time.  (Fig.  35). 

When  the  cask  is  about  empty,  and  the  stream  through  the 
faucet  diminishes,  try  frequently  whether  the  wine  runs  clear. 
As  soon  as  it  becomes  cloudy,  shut  the  faucet,  and  put  the 
cloudy  wine  into  the  separate  cask  for  that  purpose.  Should 


314 


GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 


it  still  be  clear,  when  run  off,  shut  the  faucet,*and  tip  the  cask 
gently,  either  \vith  the  jack  or  by  hand,  say  six  inches  at  the 


further  end.  Then  try  again  and  it"  it  still  runs  clear,  it  can 
be  added  to  the  first.  The  cloudy  wine  also  should  only  be 
used  as  long  as  it  runs  somewhat  limpid  ;  as  soon  as  it  be- 
comes thick  it  should  be  shut  off.  If  the  wine  should  be 
mouldy  on  top,  it  must  be  closely  watched  ;  for  as  soon  as  it 
runs  down  to  the  level  of  the  faucet,  the  mould  will  run  out. 
This  can  be  filtered  by  laying  a  clean  flannel  cloth  over  the 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  815 

funnel,  \yhich  will  retain  the  mould.  But  with  proper  care 
this  will  only  happen  with  very  weak,  light  bodied  wines. 

Then  withdraw  the  faucet,  and  let  the  sediment  run  out 
through  the  hole,  or  if  your  cask  has  a  manhole  or  door,  as 
all  over  300  gallon  capacity  ought  to  have,  you  can  unscrew 
it,  and  take  the  lees  out.  They  can  be  used  for  brandy,  but 
should  for  that  purpose  either  be  distilled  immediately,  or 
kept  in  air  tight  casks  or  tanks  until  all  are  ready. 

When  all  the  lees  that  will  run  out  have  been  emptied,  put  sev- 
eral buckets  of  clear  water  into  the  empty  cask,  shaking  it  thor- 
oughly, so  that  all  parts  are  reached.  Repeat  this  until  the  water 
runs  from  the  bung  perfectly  clear  and  limpid.  For  small 
casks  the  rinsing  chain  is  very  useful  (Fig.  31)  as  the  sedi- 
ment is  very  slimy,  and  if  any  remains  on  the  sides  of  the 
cask,  it  is  apt  to  injure  the  wine.  Large  casks  with  manholes, 
can  of  course  be  brushed  clean  inside.  Remember  that  clean- 
liness is  absolutely  necessary,  if  you  want  clear,  pure  tasting 
wine.  You  cannot  have  it  without  this. 

A  great  many  sulphur  all  the  casks  before  using  them,  es- 
pecially white  wines.  It  is  well  enough  to  use  sulphur  to 
keep  empty  casks  sweet  and  free  from  mold,  but  they  ought 
to  be  rinsed  with  clear  water  before  using.  Unless  white  wine 
is  dull,  and  lacks  spirit,  I  think  sulphuring  a  positive  injury, 
which  is  apt  to  destroy  or  at  least  vitiate  that  delicacy  which 
should  be  their  characteristic.  If  otherwise  good  and  sound, 
they  need  no  sulphur  to  make  them  so.  To  red  wines  it  is  a 
positive  injury,  as  it  deadens  their  color  and  decreases  it. 

Having  racked  and  cleaned  one  cask,  we  can  refill  it  with 
the  next;  and  should  the  first  not  be  quite  full,  fill  it  with 
the  same  or  a  similar  wine,  and  so  go  on  until  all  is  finished. 

The  principal  rules  to  observe  are: 

i st.  Choose  bright  and  clear  weather,  and  avoid  damp 
and  rainy  days,  as  well  as  storms. 

2d.    Do  not  rack  until  your  wine  is  clear,  unless  it  is  to  re- 


316  GRAPE  CULTUKE    AND 

move  it  to  a  different  temperature,  or  you  need  the  casks  for 
further  fermentatiou. 

3d.  Do  not  rack  when  the  vine  is  in  bloom,  or  when  the 
fruit  commences  to  color. 

4th.  Do  not  have  the  wine  exposed  to  the  air  for  any 
length  of  time. 

5th.  Take  care  to  do  it  thoroughly,  and  keep  it  clear  from 
all  traces  of  sediment. 

6th.  During  either  very  hot  or  very  cold  weather,  keep  the 
door  of  cellar  or  fermenting  room  closed,  so  as  to  avoid 
changes  of  temperature. 

Generally  speaking,  racking  is  necessary  only  twice  a  year, 
if  performed  thoroughly  and  well.  New  wines  should  be 
racked  in  December,  or  as  soon  as  clear,  then  again  in  Feb- 
ruary or  March,  and  again  in  August.  This  will  of  course 
vary  with  the  climate,  and  no  fixed  rule  can  be  given.  Un- 
less the  wine  has  been  handled  and  racked  very  carefully,  a 
slight  fermentation  takes  place  in  June  or  July,  and  as  soon 
as  it  becomes  entirely  quiet  again,  it  should  be  racked.  Very 
much  depends  on  the  thoroughness  of  the  operation,  when 
performed  the  first  and  second  time. 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  317 


CHAPTER  VII. 

CLARIFICATION,   FILTERING    AND     FINING. 

If  wine  is  sound  and  well  made,  it  seldom  requires  any- 
thing more  but  careful  racking,  and  this  is  certainly  preferable. 
If,  however,  from  some  cause  it  will  not  clear  of  itself,  it  may 
become  necessary  to  do  so  artificially.  We  can  do  this  by 
two  different  methods,  mechanically  by  niters,  or  chemically 
and  mechanically  by  fining. 

FILTERING. 

This  acts  simply  mechanically,  as  the  wine  is  pressed  in 
some  way  through  a  substance  which  acts  as  a  retainer  for  the 
impurities  contained  in  it.  Among  those  most  commonly  in 
use  are  paper  filters,  where  a  strong  pressure  forces  the  wine 
from  above  through  the  pores  of  blotting  paper,  also  through 
felt  and  woolen  bags.  The  one  most  perfect  in  its  action, 
and  which  has  at  the  same  time  the  advantage  of  low  cost, 
automatic  action,  and  being  cleaned  easily,  I  have  seen  at  the 
inventors,  Mr.  A.  Beck,  corner  6th  and  Mission  sts.,  San  Fran- 
cisco. I  have  also  seen  wines  which  had  run  through  it,  and 
compared  them  with  the  same  wine  before  filtering,  and  can  tes- 
tify to  their  great  improvement  from  the  process.  The  inventor 
deserves  great  credit  for  his  ingenuity  and  skill,  which  has  re- 
sulted in  an  apparatus  within  the  reach  of  every  one,  and 
which  ought  to  be  in  every  cellar.  (Fig.  37)  represents  the 
apparatus  in  use.  The  wine  to  be  filtered  is  contained  in 
cask  A,  which  is  elevated  on  a  platform  a  few  feet  above  the 
filter,  B.  The  wine  runs  through  a  faucet  and  hose,  into  the 
bottom  of  the  filter,  which  contains  a  number  of  circular 
flannel  sacks,  drawn  over  spiral  springs  to  keep  them  sus- 


318 


GRAPE   CULTURE   AND 


pended.     The  wine  raises  in  the  filter  by  the  pressure  of  the 
fluid  from  the  cask  above,  is  pressed  through  the  bags,  rises 


to  a  false  bottom  which  holds  them  in  position,  and  flows 
from  there  through  a  hose  D,  into  the  cask  E,  below.  It 
takes  about  12  hours,  with  a  filter  of  10  gallon  capacity,  to 
filter  a  puncheon  of  160  gallons,  and  the  apparatus,  when  once 
started  at  night,  needs  no  looking  after  until  the  next  morn- 
ing, when  the  cloudiest  wine  has  been  transformed  into  a 
liquid  as  clear  and  bright  as  the  sun.  The  sacks  can  be 
easily  cleaned,  by  forcing  water  from  above  through  them,  or 
taken  out  and  washed  for  further  operations.  I  have  been 
thus  explicit  because  I  think  the  invention  destined  to  super- 
cede  all  finings  as  well  as  all  other  mechanical  processes,  and 
be  of  real  benefit  to  every  wine  maker,  while  its  cheapness 
brings  it  within  the  reach  of  every  one.  In  fact  I  think  it  so 
perfect  that  it  would  be  superfluous  to  describe  other  filters. 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  319 

••  • 

FINING  WITH   CHEMICAL  SUBSTANCES. FOR  WHITE    WINE. 

Gelatine  and  Isinglass  are  the  most  common  and  best  fin- 
ings for  white  wine.  The  first  is  prepared  from  the  bones, 
skins  and  tendons  of  animals,  and  comes  in  tablets  or  sheets 
generally.  It  is  one  of  the  most  powerful  of  finings,  and 
takes  a  great  deal  of  tannin  and  color  with  it,  should  there- 
fore not  be  used  for  red  wines,  except  when  it  is  desired  to 
deprive  them  of  an  excess  of  tannin  and  color.  It  precipi- 
tates more  sediment  than  most,  other  finings,  is  apt  to  leave 
a  bad  taste  in  the  wine,  and  wines  fined  with  it  should  be 
racked  from  the  finings  as  soon  as  cleared.  It  is  generally 
only  used  to  clarify  common  white  wines,  and  if  they  are 
rather  flat,  tannin  should  be  used  with  it.  Take  about  one 
ounce  for  one  hundred  gallons,  and  soak  a  few  honrs  in. 
water.  Then  dissolve  it  in  a  dish  over  a  slow  fire  with  a 
little  water,  which,  however,  should  not  be  allowed  to  boil, 
and  stirring  constantly. 

Isinglass  or  Fish  Glue  is  made  from  the  bladder  of  the 
sturgeon,  and  comes  mostly  from  Russia.  This  is  the  best 
fining  for  white  wine.  Take  one  ounce  to  one  hundred 
gallons  of  wine,  break  it  up  by  pounding  with  a  hammer  on 
a  block  of  wood  into  small  fragments,  so  that  it  will  easily 
dissolve.  Put  in  an  earthen  vessel  and  pour  enough  of  the 
wine  to  be  fined  over  it  to  cover  it;  and  add  a  little  more 
after  an  hour  or  two,  when  the  first  has  been  absorbed. 
When  it  has  become  a  jelly,  in  about  twenty-four  hours,  it 
can  be  thinned  by  adding  more  wine,  and  working  it  by  the 
hand  until  entirely  dissolved,  then  strain  it  through  a  piece  of 
linen,  using  pressure  enough  to  squeeze  out  the  mucilage. 
It  should  be  whipped  or  beaten,  and  more  wine  added  if  too 
thick.  It  can  be  kept  in  bottles  for  some  time  when  pre- 
pared, by  adding  a  little  brandy. 

ALBUMINOUS    SUBSTANCES. 

Among  these  are  the  blood  of  animals,  milk,  etc.,  but  I 
21 


320  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

' »     '  *• 

do  not  recommend  them,  as  the  first  is  apt  to  leave  a  bad 
.  taste,  and  the  second  may  cause  lactic,  fermentation.  The 
.  white  of  eggs  is  the  best  of  albuminous  substances,  and  is 
mostly  used  for  clarifying  red  wines.  It  coagulates  by  the 
action  of  the  alcohol  and  tannin,  and  forms  a  precipitate 
heavier  than  the  liquid,  carrying  with  it  as  it  falls,  the  matters 
in  suspension  in  the  wine.  Only  fresh  eggs  should  be  used, 
but  the  yolks  must  be  carefully  kept  out,  as  they  discolor  the 
wine.  Take  a  dozen  eggs  for  a  hundred  gallons,  and  beat 
them  up  by  whipping  thoroughly,  together  with  a  small  quan- 
tity of  wine  before  using. 

For  weak  wines,  containing  so  little  spirit  that  the  finings 
do  not  act,  alcohol  must  be  added.  For  wines  that  are 
deficient  in  tannin,  this  should  be  added;  for  upon  the  proper 
quantity  of  this,  and  the  alcoholic  strength,  depend  the  ac- 
tion of  the  finings.  If  the  wines  contain  enough  of  alcohol, 
as  they  generally  do  here,  and  the  finings  do  not  act.  the 
cause  is  generally  a  deficiency  of  tannin;  and  sufficient  must 
be  added  to  produce  the  desired  effect.  One-half  to  one 
ounce  to  the  ordinary  tannin  of  commerce  is  generally  suf- 
ficient. Dissolve  one-half  pound  in  a  quart  of  strong  alco- 
^hol,  by  shaking  thoroughly  in  a  bottle  of  double  the  size. 
When  it  has  been  mixed  twenty-four  hours  it  is  filtered,  and 
one  gill  of  the  solution  contains  one  ounce  of  tannic  acid. 

After  the  finings  have  been  prepared  as  above,  two  or  three 
gallons  are  drawn  from  the  cask  which  is  to  be  treated,  by 
siphon  or  a  small  hose  from  the  bung  hole,  the  finings  poured 
in,  and  thoroughly  stirred  with  the  wine.  This  may  be  done 
with  a  stick  split  at  the  end  into  several  prongs,  or  by  a  brush 
formed  by  bristles  or  flexible  wire.  (Fig.  38).  The  wine 
drawn  out  should  then  be  filled  in  again,  until  the  cask  is 
perfectly  full,  and  left  to  rest  until  the  wine  is  bright.  The 
time  in  which  this  takes  place  varies  from  two  to  four  weeks, 
three  weeks  being  about  the  average.  But  it  should  not  be 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA. 


321 


left  on  the  finings  after  it  has  cleared,  as  even  the  best  and 
purest  are  apt  to  impart  a  disagreeable 
flavor,  if  the  wine  is  left  on  them  too  long. 
I  trust  that  the  filter  described  may  do 
away  with  finings  altogether,  and  thus  save 
expense,  unnecessary  labor,  and  risk  of 
any  taste  from  the  finings.  We  want  to 
furnish  pure  wine,  the  most  perfect  and 
pure  we  can  have,  to  the  world;  and  any- 
thing which  will  enable  us  to  do  so  within1 
the  shortest  possible  time,  should  be  wel- 
FIG.  38.  corned  and  adopted  by  our  wine  makers 

as  well  as  by  the  trade. 


CHAPTER   VIII. 

AGING    WINE. 

We  hear  a  great  deal  on  the  subject  of  aging  wine,  on  Cali- 
fornia wines  being  too  young  when  they  are  sold,  etc.  There 
is  no  doubt  a  great  deal  of  truth  in  this,  for  it  is  a  well  recog- 
nized fact  that  strong,  full  bodied  wines  require  a  longer 
period  for  their  full  development  than  lighter  wines;  and  as 
our  wines  are  of  the  former  class,  it  is  but  natural  that  they 
should  require  time  to  bring  out  their  best  qualities.  But  to 
understand  this  fully,  we  must  understand  first  the  true  mean- 
ing of  the  term  "old  wine." 

I  call  a  wine  "old"  when  it  is  fully  developed,  when  it  is 
perfectly  clear  and  bright,  having  deposited  all  the  impurities 
it  contains  when  young,  and  has  obtained  the  highest  degree 


322  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

of  perfection,  has  fully  developed  its  flavor  and  bouquet,  in 
short,  when  it  has  arrived  at  full  maturity.  If  bottled  at  that 
period,  it  will  retain  these  qualities  and  perhaps  even  improve 
for  some  time,  as  it  is  made  as  near  air  tight  as  possible,  but 
we  cannot  expect  any  further  improvement  in  casks,  and  it  is 
not  a  remunerative  article  to  keep  after  this. 

Thus  it  often  happens  that  a  certain  wine  is  older,  that  is 
more  developed,  at  six  months  or  a  year,  than  another  is  or 
will  be  in  three  years;  owing  to  the  treatment  it  may  have  re- 
ceived. Let  us  consider  the  means  we  have  to  age  a  wine, 
in  succession,  and  we  will  know  better  how  to  attain  age  as 
soon  as  possible. 

Fermentation.  Complete  fermentation  is  certainly  the  first 
step  towards  complete  development;  without  it  we  cannot 
expect  to  have  a  wine  which  will  develop  rapidly.  If  this 
progresses  regularly  and  thoroughly,  not  too  fast  or  too  slow, 
so  that  the  wine  is  dry  in  six  to  eight  days  from  pressing, 
there  will  be  little  trouble  afterwards.  Air  treatment  will  do 
a  great  deal  to  help  this  along,  and  should  be  applied,  in  red 
wines  by  frequent  foulage  or  stirring,  in  white  wines  by  keep- 
ing them  in  a  well-regulated  temperature,  and  if  they  show- 
any  sluggishness,  by  conducting  air  through  them  by  the 
D,Heureuse  process,  racking  in  the,  manner  indicated,  by 
letting  the  wine  run  through  the  faucet  in  a  spiral  manner, 
or  through  the  rose  of  a  common  watering  pot,  so  that  every 
particle  comes  into  contact  with  the  air.  Of  course,  this  is 
only  to  be  applied  while  fermentation  is  still  going  on;  when 
this  is  over,  it  would  work  to  the  detriment  of  the  wine,  in- 
stead of  improving  it. 

Temperature.  This  is  an  important  agent  in  aging  wine, 
after  it  is  thoroughly  fermented.  Wines  kept  at  an  even 
temperature,  summer  and  winter,  will  improve  more  and 
faster,  than  those  subjected  to  sudden  changes.  Hence  the 
difficulty  of  properly  aging  wines  in  very  hot  climates. 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  323 

Filtering  and  fining.  These  are  important  agents  in  aging 
wines,  by  removing  all  the  substances  which  would  induce  a 
second  or  third  fermentation. 

Heating.  Pasteur  has  invented  a  process  by  which  the 
wine  is  subjected  for  a  short  time  to  a  heat  of  130  to  140  F. 
This  is  on  the  theory  that  when  wine  has  come  to  a  certain 
stage  of  development,  the  Ja^at  kills  all  the  germs  of  further 
fermentation.  This,  however,  excludes  all  further  improve- 
ment also,  and  while  U  may  be  advisable  to  apply  to  com- 
mon wines,  I  would  certainly  not  apply  it  to  fine  wines. 

As  a  general  rule,  if  wine  is  well  and  thoroughly  fermented, 
and  well  treated  afterwards,  in  racking,  clarification  if  neces- 
sary, the  casks  are  kept  well  filled,  and  at  an  even  tempera- 
ture, it  will  not  be  found  necessary  to  resort  to  any  more 
artificial  means  to  age  it.  Good  treatment  will  often  pro- 
duce an  older,  /.  e.  more  developed  wine  in  one  year,  than 
the  same  variety,  but  under  slovenly  treatment,  will  furnish 
in  three.  In  fact,  slovenly  treatment  will  not  and  ought  not 
to  make,  good  wines;  while  careful  handling  will  always  pro- 
duce them.  It  is  the  old  question  of  the  survival  and  suc- 
cess of  the  fittest,  which  is  eminently  verified  in  wine  making, 

There  is  a  great  difference  also  in  the  wines  as  to  the  time 
when  they  reach  their  highest  perfection.  Wines  rather  thin 
and  light,  deficient  in  body  and  tannin,  as  also  in  color,  will 
develop  sooner  and  reach  their  highest  state  of  development 
in  a  much  shorter  time,  than  those  rich  in  sugar,  flavor,  color, 
tannin  and  alcohol.  In  fact  all  the  grand,  fine  wines  need  a 
longer  period  to  reach  perfection,  but  will  also  retain  it  much 
longer  than  the  reverse.  It  takes  more  time  naturally  to  bring 
out  their  high  quality,  but  when  it  does  come,  it  is  to  stay. 
Thus  it  may  be  safely  asserted  that  the  general  run  of  Zinfan- 
dels  and  Burgers  will  not  improve  after  two  or  three  years  at 
the  furthest,  while  the  Cabernet  Sauvignons,  Chauche  Noir 
{or  true  Burgundy),  Riesling  and  Traminer  will  be  best  after 


324  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

two  years,  and  keep  improving  as  they  grow  older.  I  have 
tasted  Rieslings  and  Traminers  in  this  State,  eight  to  ten 
years  old,  which  it  would  be  difficult  to  excel  any  where  for 
flavor,  richness  and  mellowness.  Who  ever  has  such  wines, 
and  can  afford  to  keep  them,  will  certainly  not  loose  by  doing 
so;  while  the  producer  of  lighter  wines  will  do  well  to  sell  as 
soon  as  he  receives  a  fair  offer.  Let  us  not  forget  that  it  is 
not  age  alone  which  gives  wines  their  quality  and  their  name; 
there  must  be  something  else  to  make  them  grand  wines. 
Small  wines  in  fact  have  a  sprightliness  when  young,  which 
makes  them  appear  better  than  they  really  are.  They  will 
sell  best  as  long  as  this  remains,  and  become  flat  and  dull  with 
age. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

DISEASES    OF    WINE. 

Here  again,  preventative  is  better  than  cure.  Wine  pro- 
perly made  and  handled,  will  not  become  diseased  in  our  cli- 
mate, where  we  always  have  sugar  in  the  grape  to  produce  it 
of  sufficient  alcoholic  strength  to  keep  it.  In  this  respect, 
though  the  French  may  beat  us  as  wine  doctors,  we  have  the 
advantage  of  them  in  the  perfection  of  our  product,  which 
needs  no  doctoring,  if  well  made  and  treated. 

But  still  we  have  patients  enough  in  our  State,  made  so  by 
improper  treatment,  and  although  hardly  competent  to  pre- 
scribe for  them,  as  my  wines  were  generally  healthy,  I  will 
try  and  give  some  advice  in  cases  of  emergency,  which  may 
arise  even  in  the  best  regulated  wine  cellars. 


WINE-MAKING  IN   CALIFORNIA.  325 

Earthy  flavor.  Sometimes,  young  wines  have  this,  when 
the  grapes  were  grown  on  poorly  drained  or  very  rich,  or 
heavily  manured  land.  The  best  cure  for  them  are  frequent 
rackings,  they  should  not  be  left  long  on  the  pomace  in  fer- 
menting, and  as  soon  as  passably  clear  and  quiet,  they  should 
be  either  filtered  or  fined  energetically.  If  rather  flat  and 
deficient  in  tannin,  they  should  have  some  tannin  added, 
about  an  ounce  for  100  gallons,  with  the  finings,  which  will 
help  to  deposit  the  insoluble  'matter,  and  then  racked.  Re- 
peated rackings  will  do  much  to  remove  it. 

Greenness.  This  is  caused  by  an  excess  of  tartaric  acid, 
and  gives  a  sour  taste  to  the  wine,  resembling  unripe  grapes. 
It  is  caused  by  picking  the  grapes  too  soon.  It  need  not 
happen  here,  as  we  can  always  have  our  grapes  ripe  enough, 
but  is  often  found  in  the  wines  made  from  second  crop.  It 
will  gradually  disappear  with  age,  after  the  first  two  rackings, 
when  the  tartaric  acid  falls  to  the  bottom  and  sides  of  the 
casks,  and  chrystallizes  there.  It  is  sometimes  the  case  that  a 
heavy  bodied  wine,  containing  little  acid,  can  be  blended 
with  such  wine  to  mutual  advantage.  In  this  case,  make  a 
test  with  a  small  quantity  first,  mixing  it  in  a  glass,  until  you 
have  the  proportions  for  a  blend  to  benefit  both,  so  that  you 
can  work  understandingly,  taking  as  a  rule,  the  benefit  which 
the  better  wine  receives  from  the  blend,  not  the  advantages  to 
the  inferior.  Sometimes,  surprising  results  are  obtained  in 
this  way,  but  it  takes  long  practice  and  a  good  tongue  to  pro- 
duce good  blends.  However,  each  wine  maker  should  strive 
to  be  proficient  in  the  art,  without  which  his  practice  is  stilt 
incomplete.  This  is  by  far  pieferable  to  adding  lime  or  other 
alkaline  substances,  which  neutralize  the  acid,  but  are  un- 
healthy and  should  not  be  used. 

Roughness.  Caused  by  excess  of  tannin,  and  is  not  always 
a  fault,  but  an  excess  of  a  good  quality  in  young  wines,  which 
will  disappear  in  time.  It  can  be  avoided  in  fermentation 


326  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

by  taking  the  wine  from  the  pomace  sooner,  as  indicated  be- 
fore. If  the  rough  wine  has  only  astringency,  without  bitter- 
ness or  excessive  acid,  it  will  improve  very  much  by  age,  and 
it  is  safe  to  leave  it  alone.  Judicious  blending  is  often  very 
valuable  also,  as  for  instance  blending  the  wine  which  may  be 
very  rough,  but  contain  little  acid,  with  dark  color,  with  one 
that  is  deficient  in  tannin,  but  has  abundance  of  acid,  and 
lacks  color. 

Sourness.  Is  generally  caused  by  a  too  prolonged  fermen- 
tation on  the  skins,  or  appears  in  wines  that  were  "  stuck"  in 
fermentation.  It  shows* acetic  acid  in  the  wine,  and  if  this 
is  present  in  any  marked  degree,  so  as  to  become  at  once  per- 
ceptible to  the  nose  or  tongue,  the  best  course  is  to  distil  such 
wines  ;  they  are  hardly  worth  the  trouble  of  doctoring,  and 
will  never  be  quite  sound  again.  It  is  also  caused  by  ex- 
posure to  the  air  from  looseness  of  the  bung,  and  from  using 
soured  casks,  which  impart  it  at  once.  If  all  these  are  avoided, 
as  they  should  be  in  a  well  regulated  cellar,  there  will  be  no 
milksour,  nor  pricked  wine.  Some  authors  recommend  neu- 
tralizing the  acidity  with  chalk  or  marble  dust,  but  my  advice 
to  the  reader  is,  to  leave  these  unwholesome  practices  alone, 
turn  your  pricked  wine  into  vinegar  and  brandy,  and  resolve 
to  have  no  more  of  it  in  future. 

Weakness.  We  are  not  troubled  with  this  here,  if  we  plant 
the  proper  varieties.  If  we  have  some,  however,  the  proper 
remedy  is  to  blend  with  a  heavy,  full  wine,  or  to  add  alcohol 
or  grape  brandy,  from  one  to  two  quarts  to  each  100  gallons. 

Flatness,  Mouldiness,  or  Flowers.  These  only  appear  in 
neglected  or  weak  wines,  and  will  seldom  be  found  in  well 
regulated  cellars,  or  in  wines  properly  made  and  handled. 
They  generally  go  together,  and  are  the  consequence  of  ex- 
posure to  air.  If  the  bung  is  frequently  removed,  and  the 
cask  not  kept  well  filled,  the  vacuum  becomes  filled  with  im- 
pure air,  and  the  wine  degenerates,  forming  a  white  film  or 


WINE-MAKING   IN    CALIFORNIA.  327 

mould  on  top,  which  the  Germans  call  kahm,  and  the  En- 
glish writers  very  unappropriately,  I  think,  the  flowers  of  wine, 
for  it  certainly  does  not  bring  forth  good  fruit,  and  is  any- 
thing but  ornamental.  The  surface  of  the  \\ine  which  shows 
them  has  become  flat,  acetic,  and  mould  begins  to  form;  and  if 
not  counteracted  at  once  the  wine  will  spoil.  It  is  generally 
found  on  wines  weak  in  alcohol,  or  those  that  are  neglected 
in  filling  up  and  bunging.  The  simplest  mechanical  means 
of  counteracting  it  is  to  fill  the  cask  so  that  it  runs  over,  and 
if  this  is  done  gently  and  slowly  the  mould  will  float  out  on 
the  surface  of  the  wine.  When  no  more  mould  appears,  the. 
cask  is  bunged  up  tight.  It  will,  however,  also  be  necessary 
to  rack  the  wine  into  a  fresh  cask  which  has  been  newly  sul- 
phured, and  when  the  wine  has  run  down  to  the  faucet  look 
out  closely;  if  any  mould  appears,  keep  the  wine  separate;  or 
if  you  fill  it  into  the  same  cask  spread  a  flannel  cloth  over  the 
funnel,  and  strain  the  mouldy  wine  through  it.  If  this  is  done 
promptly  the  wine  can  be  saved,  but  if  left  in  the  cask  with 
the  mould  on  it,  it  will  soon  spoil  altogether,  becomes  flat, 
looses  all  sprightliness,  and  acquires  a  disagreeable,  mouldy 
taste. 

Dull  bluish  or  leaden  color.  Flavor  of  the  lees.  This  is 
also  due  to  neglect  generally,  and  will  seldom  appear  in  well 
regulated  cellars.  Its  cause  is  generally  improper  racking,  or 
rather  neglect  of  racking  at  the  proper  time,  or  mixing  turbid 
wine  with  the  clear  at  racking,  or  irregular  temperature  in  the 
cellar,  also  defective  fermentation.  Rack  into  a  fresh  cask 
well  sulphured,  and  see  if  they  will  clarify.  If  they  still  re- 
main dull  and  turbid,  it  is  to  be  supposed  that  they  lack 
either  tannin  or  alcohol.  If  the  former,  it  can  be  added  as 
indicated  before  ;  if  the  latter,  a  quart  of  alcohol  to  every 
twenty  gallons.  The  alcoholometer  will  show  if  the  wine  is 
weak  in  spirits,  and  the  above  proportion  is  for  a  wine  of  eight 
per  cent,  of  alcohol,  ten  being  the  lowest  normal  strength  of 


328  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

California  wines.  If  it  still  remains  turbid,  after  two  to  three 
weeks,  filter  or  fine  heavily,  and  when  the  wine  is  clear,  put 
into  freshly  sulphured  casks.  Such  wine  is  apt  to  go  into 
putrid  decomposition,  and  should  be  watched  closely  ;  but 
well  fermented  and  handled  wines  will  not  show  any  of  these 
symptoms,  and  the  cellar  man  is  generally  to  blame  for  their 
appearance. 

Ropiness  or  toughness.  Its  cause  is  a  viscuous  fermentation 
in  wines,  which  makes  it  slimy  in  appearance,  so  that  it  does 
not  run  freely,  but  draws  in  threads.  It  is  caused  by  an  ex- 
cess of  albuminous  matter,  and  want  of  tannin;  generally  only 
appears  in  certain  white  wines,  which  are  very  mild  naturally. 
It  can  be  cured  by  the  addition  of  an  ounce  of  tannin  to  one- 
hundred  gallons,  dissolved  in  wine  and  added  in  the  manner 
of  fining,  stirring  it  well,  and  after  two  or  three  weeks,  rack  'it. 
Sometimes  lack  of  tartaric  acid  is  the  cause,  and  certain  of 
our  best  wine  grapes,  for  instance  Franken  Riesling,  which 
are  rich  in  albumen  and  rather  lacking  in  acidity.  A  new 
fermentation  over  the  husks  of  grapes  rather  high  in  tannin 
and  acidity  will  also  cure  it. 

Mouldy  taste.  This  comes  from  impure  casks,  and  the 
cellar  man  is  to  blame  for  it  when  it  does  occur.  It  can  only 
be  prevented  by  cleanliness.  The  wine  should  be  racked 
into  a  sweet,  clean  cask,  well  sulphured;  or  fermented  again 
over  fresh  pomace;  but  will  generally  retain  a  trace  of  it. 

All  of  these  diseases  seldom  occur  if  the  proper  care  is 
taken,  and  I  can  only  reiterate  the  instructions  as  to  the  ut- 
most care  in  fermentation,  cleanliness  of  all  utensils,  racking 
at  the  proper  time,  and  with  proper  care.  If  this  is  done, 
we  need  have  no  diseased  or  defective  wines. 


WINE-MAKING  IN   CALIFORNIA.  329 


CHAPTER   X. 

CUTTING     AND    BLENDING. 

This  is  an  art  in  which  especially  the  French  excel,  and 
which  has  given  them  such  prominence  in  the  wine  market.  - 
It  can  not  be  acquired  in  a  few  days,  or  even  a  few  seasons, 
and  yet  it  is  something  that  every  wine  maker  should  under- 
stand, and  on  which  his  success  in  a  great  measure  depends. 
It  depends  on  an  intimate  knowledge  of  each  variety  of  the 
grapes  he  handles,  its  prominent  qualities  and  its  defects, 
and  he  cannot  do  any  successful  blending,  before  he  has 
tried  each  variety  separately,  and  knows,  what  kind  of  wine 
it  will  make  by  itself.  Nor  can  French  and  German  exper- 
ience avail  us  much  here;  as  the  varieties  they  use  with  emi- 
nent success,  may  give  an  entirely  different  product  for  us. 
And  again,  the  experience  and  practice  of  Northern  Califor- 
nia cannot  avail  in  the  South,  nor  be  alike  every  season,  as 
each  section  and  each  season  may  and  will  give  a  different 
product. 

There  are  two  kinds  of  blending,  before  or  after  fer- 
mentation. The  first  is  done  by  fermenting  the  grapes  of 
two  or  three  varieties  together,  picking  the  grapes  on  the 
same  day,  and  mixing  them  in  the  fermenting  vat,  or  even  on 
the  press  and  at  crushing.  This  no  doubt  is  the  most  natu- 
ral and  intimate  way  of  making  blended  wine,  for  in  fermen- 
tation the  union  becomes  complete,  and  one  variety  often 
materially  assists  the  other.  For  instance,  we  will  suppose  a 
case  of  two  varieties,  Chauche  Gris  and  Burger.  The  first, 
when  fully  ripened,  is  very  rich  in  sugar,  very  full  bodied, 
rather  deficient  in  acid  and  tannin.  The  Burger  is  light  in 


330  GRAPE   CULTURE    AND 

sugar,  has  a  superabundance  of  acid  and  tannin,  The  first 
is  rather  sluggish  in  fermentation,  the  last  ferments  easily  and 
quickly.  Here  would  be  a  case  for  successful  blending,  and 
there  is  no  question  that  about  one-third  of  Burger,  added  to 
two-thirds  of  Chauche  Gris,  will  make  a  better  wine  than 
each  by  itself.  But  then  a  difficulty  presents  itself  in  their 
different  times  of  ripening.  The  Chauche  is  medium  early, 
and  the  Burger  late  in  ripening;  and  even  the  Chauche 
ought  not  to  get  dead  ripe,  but  be  taken  when  it  shows  about 
25°  B.,  when  the  Burger  ought  to  hang  until  fully  ripe,  at 
least  a  month  later.  We  can,  therefore,  not  ferment  them 
together,  but  must  make  the  wine  of  each  separate,  when  the 
proper  time  comes,  when  each  will  give  us  a  perfect  product, 
or  as  near  perfection  as  the  two  grapes  will  yield,  and  then 
mix  them  after  fermentation.  Now  let  us  suppose  another, 
Marsanne  and  Burger.  Here  we  have  a  case  which  we  can 
blend  in  the  fermenting  vat,  because  they  ripen  at  the  same 
time;  or  Marsanne  and  Herbemont,  or  Marsanne  and  Clair- 
ette  Blanche.  All  ripen  late,  Marsanne  is  very  full  and 
smooth,  lacking  acid,  with  decided  and  very  full  flavor;  the 
others  are  sprightly,  with  rather  superabundance  of  acid  and 
tannin.  Each  by  itself  will  make  a  desirable  wine,  but  fer- 
mented together  with  something  like  one-half  Marsanne  and 
one-half  of  Herbemont  and  Clairette,  or  two-thirds  Marsanne, 
and  one-third  Burger,  will  in  most  seasons  produce  a  nearly 
perfect  wine;  and  "go  through"  quickly. 

Another  case  in  point.  Refosco  or  "  Crabbs  Black  Bur- 
gundy," as  it  is  better  known,  has  fine  color,  plenty  of  acid 
and  sugar,  fine  bouquet,  but  is  rather  defective  in  tannin. 
Grosse  Blaue,  or  Koelner,  has  little  bouquet,  but  superabun- 
dance of  tannin.  They  ripen  at  the  same  time,  therefore  can 
be  blended  in  the  fermenting  vat.  Very  likely  two  thirds  of 
the  first,  and  one  third  of  the  latter  would  make  a  successful 
blend.  But  the  exact  proportions  will  have  to  be  determined 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  331 

by  the  experimenter,  as  no  uniform  rule  can  be  given  to  cover 
the  differences  which  location,  soil  and  climate  may  make  in 
the  composition  of  each. 

Zinfandel  will  blend  successfully  with  many  varieties,  as  it 
has  sprightliness,  good  flavor,  and  abundance  of  acid,  but 
lacks  fullness,  smoothness,  and  in  many  locations,  color. 
Lenoir,  Chauche  Noir  and  Mondeuse,  also  Petit  Bouschet 
are  good  varieties  to  blend  with  it.  A  very  fair  guide  for 
blending  in  the  fermenting  vat  the  next  season,  is  to  ferment 
each  variety  separately,  and  then  making  tests  in  a  glass,  say 
for  instance,  when  you  have  separate  samples  of  Marsanne 
and  Herbemont,  or  Clairette  Blanche,  take  four  glasses,  one 
with  pure  wine  from  each,  and  mix  in  the  two  others;  take 
for  instance  one  half  Marsanne,  one  half  Herbemont,  and  pour 
them  together,  changing  them  from  one  glass  to  the  other, 
until  they  are  thoroughly  mixed.  Then  compare  the  mixture 
with  each  of  the  pure  samples,  and  see  whether  it  suits  your 
taste  better  than  either  of  them  alone.  If  yet  too  full,  try 
one-third  Marsanne,  two-thirds  Herbemont;  if  too  acid,  two- 
thirds  Marsanne  and  one-third  Herbemont,  always  mixing 
well,  and  comparing  with  the  pure  samples.  A  little  practice 
will  soon  enable  you  to  find  the  right  proportions,  and  when 
you  have  determined  on  these,  you  are  not  very  apt  to  go  far 
wrong  in  fermenting  them  together  the  next  season;  and  the 
same  practice  will  enable  us  to  successfully  blend  what  we 
already  have.  Sometimes,  three  varieties  can  and  ought  to 
be  used  to  make  a  successful  blend.  For  instance,  for  the 
celebrated  Chateau  Yquem,  three  varieties  are  used,  the 
Semillion,  Sauvignori  Blanc,  and  Muscadelle  de  Bordelais. 
But  in  making  these  tests,  they  can  only  be  of  value  when  the 
different  wines  are  in  about  the  same  stage  of  development. 

Again,  it  may  become  desirable  to  blend  the  product  of 
two  vintages.  One  may  be  full  and  rich,  the  other  light  and 
sprightly.  The  same  procedure  will  show  us  what  to  do 


332  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

in  such  cases,  but  remember  that,  when  you  want  to  blend 
two  different  vintages,  each  should  be  a  finished  wine,  fully 
fermented  and  clear,  as  blending  is  apt  to  cause  an  after  fer- 
mentation, if  this  is  not  the  case. 

The  aim  in  all  blending  ought  to  be,  to  produce  a  wine  as 
perfect  as  we  can  attain;  in  short,  improvement  of  two  really 
good  wines,  which,  however,  may  yet  lack  certain  qualities 
which  the  other  does  possess;  not  to  make  a  poor  wine  barely 
sileable  by,  blending  it  with  a  better.  If  you  want  to  attain 
a  name  and  fame  for  your  product,  never  sell  a  poor  wine 
under  your  own  name.  If  any  one  else  can  use  it,  dispose  of 
it  at  a  reduced  price,  or  condemn  it  to  the  stile.  We  can  al- 
ways make  sound,  drinkable,  good  wine;  let  us  resolve  to 
produce  and  sell  no  other.  Blending,  if  followed  as  indicated 
above,  is  an  important  factor  to  attain  this  end. 


CHAPTER  XL 

BOTTLING    WINE. 

This  is  rather  for  the  dealer  than  the,  producer  ;  yet  every 
producer  may  want  to  keep  some  of  his  wines  in  bottles,  to 
see  how  they  develop,  and  sometimes  to  keep  small  quantities 
.when  racking.  I  shall  not  go  into  this  subject  elaborately,  but 
simply  give  a  few  brief  rules,  which  will  enable  any  one  to 
keep  wine  in  bottles,  without  going  into  the  commercial  part 
of  it,  which  belongs  to  the  wholesale  dealer. 

The  wine  you  want  to  bottle  should  be  ripe,  that  is  it 
should  be  perfectly  fermented,  dear  and  bright,  have  its  bouquet 


WINE-MAKING   IN   CALIFORNIA.  333 

developed,    and  not  leave  a  trace  of  the    pungency  on  the 
tongue,  which  is  always  a  sign  of  slow  fermentation. 

The  bottles  should  be  perfectly  clean,  and  of  good  glass. 
For  all  wines  resembling  hock,  take  the  long  slender  bottle, 
generally  known  as  hock,  for  red  wines  and  Sauternes,  the 
common  claret  bottles  are  used.  For  cleaning  bottles,  a  com- 
mon brush  of  hog  bristles,  put  cross  ways  through  a  handle  of 
strong  double  wire,  does  good  service,  though  they  can  gen^ 
erally,  if  new,  be  cleaned  by  rinsing  in  cool  water. 

Use  good  corks;  for  on  the  cork  being  air  tight,  and  clean 
and  fresh,  depends  the  keeping  of  the  wine  in  a  great  meas- 
ure. Scald  in  boiling  water  first  to  make  them  soft,  and  ex- 
tract all  impurities  ;  let  them  stand  a  quarter  of  an  hour  until 
they  are  thoroughly  steamed  and  softened,  then  drain  off  the 
hot  water,  and  immerse  them  in  cold  clear  water. 

For  small  quantities,  no  elaborate  and  costly  bottling 
machine  is  needed,  but  a  single  hand  machine,  consisting  of 
a  wooden  cylinder,  with  a  rim  lined  with  rubber,  to  fit  on  the 
neck  of  the  bottle,  and  lined  with  tin  or  zinc  inside,  will  be 
found  very  convenient.  The  cork  is  put  in  at  the  top  of  the 
cylinder,  which  is  placed  .on  the  neck  of  the  bottle,  a  wooden 
pestle  put  on  top,  and  the  cork  driven  down  into  the  bottle  by 
a  few  blows  of  a  wooden  mallet.  The  bottle  should  be 
placed  on  a  somewhat  elastic  substance  below  ;  and  as  the 
cylinder  is  narrower  below  than  above,  it  compresses  the  cork 
so  that  it  will  enter  the  bottle.  They  are  made  by  parties  in 
San  Francisco,  Mr.  Henry  Waas,  I  think  ;  and  can  also  be 
found  at  Justinian  Caire. 

You  also  want  a  small  faucet  that  will  fit  the  faucet  hole  of 
your  cask  or  barrel,  and  is  small  enough  at  the  end  to  go  into 
your  bottles. 

We  are  now  about  ready  for  the  operation,  provided  the 
cask  you  intend  to  bottle  from,  has  been  placed  securely,  so 
that  no  stirring  of  any  deposit  can  cloud  the  wine.  Open  the 


334  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

bung  first,  then  place  a  bucket  or  small  tub  under  the  faucet 
hole,  remove  the  plug  and  drive  in  the  faucet  firmly.  Then 
test  the  wine  with  a  glass,  to  see  if  it  is  perfectly  clear  and 
quiet.  If  not  you  will  have  to  let  it  rest  for  a  few  days  until 
it  is,  as  it  is  worse  than  useless  to  bottle  cloudy  wine.  If 
clear,  fill  your  bottles  to  within  an  inch  of  the  cork  when 
drove  in.  It  will  expedite  the  operation  if  one  will  fill  the 
bottles,  and  another  cork  them.  Sometimes  the  wine  will 
run  cloudy  at  first,  but  be  perfectly  clear  after  a  few  bottles 
have  been  drawn.  These  should  be  kept  separate,  and  will 
deposit  their  sediment  in  a  few  days,  when  they  can  be  racked 
again.  Drive  the  cork  in  to  the  rim  of  the  bottle,  and  let  the 
wine  come  to  about  one  inch  of  it,  after  the  foam  has  subsided. 
The  bottles  should  then  be  laid  flat  on  their  sides,  so  that 
the  win?  will  cover  the  corks.  They  can  be  laid  on  the  floor 
of  the  cellar,  or  stored  in  bins  made  for  the  purpose,  of  lattice 
work  and  boards.  These  are  generally  so  constructed  that 
they  will  hold  a  double  layer  of  bottles,  which  can  be  placed 
with  their  necks  resting  against  each  other.  If  securely  corked 
with  good  corks,  it  is  not  necessary  to  seal  them,  though  wine 
dealers  either  seal  or  capsule  them.  But  as  any  one  can  easily 
inform  himself  how  to  fit  wine  for  the  market  by  labeling  and 
packing  in  cases,  if  he  intends  to  go  into  that  trade,  I  shall 
not  describe  all  the  operations  necessary  for  that  purpose,  but 
merely  confine  myself  to  the  subject  for  domestic  use,  and  to 
keep  some  samples  of  peculiar  vintages,  as  each  wine  maker 
ought  to  do. 

When  the  wine  has  rested  for  a  few  weeks,  it  ought  to  be 
examined  whether  it  has  made  any  deposit  at  the  lower  side 
of  the  bottle.  Should  this  be  the  case,  care  must  be  taken  to 
keep  the  bottle  on  the  same  side,  lay  it  firmly  on  a  board  or 
table  and  draw  the  cork,  letting  the  wine  run  off  the  sediment, 
which  imparts  a  disagreeable  taste  to  the  wine.  But  if  it  was 
thoroughly  ripe  and  well  clarified  or  filtered,  this  will  not  be 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  335 

the  case.  Red  wines  however,  will  generally  deposit  and  loose 
a  little  of  their  color  with  age,  and  if  well  handled,  can  be 
taken  off  clear. 

The  conditions  to  be  observed  as  to  temperature,  weather, 
etc.,  are  about  the  same  as  have  been  described  in  racking,  in 
fact  bottling  is  racking,  only  into  smaller  receptacles,  and  for 
greater  convenience  in  handling  small  quantities  for  con- 
sumption. 

The  exact  time  when  wine  is  ripe  for  the  bottle,  cannot  be 
determined  generally,  this  must  depend  on  its  development. 
Many  wines  are  riper  when  a  year  old  and  more  fit  for  bot- 
tling, than  others  are  at  three  years  old.  But  it  is  hardly  safe 
to  bottle  even  the  most  developed  wine  until  it  has  passed 
through  its  first  summer,  as  a  slight  fermentation  is  apt  to  set 
in,  which  must  have  entirely  subsided,  before  it  is  fit  for  the 
bottle.  With  very  heavy,  full  bodied  wines,  it  may  take  sev- 
eral years.  But  when  fully  ripe,  wine  will  develop  and  keep 
better  in  bottles  than  in  wood,  as  there  is  always  some  evapor- 
ation through  the  pores  of  the  latter,  which  is  excluded  in  the 
bottle. 


22 


336  .  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 


CHAPTER  XII. 

CONCENTRATED     MUST. 

This  is  one  of  the  new  industries,  grown  out  of  our  neces- 
sities of  finding  a  market  for  our  products,  and  our  somewhat 
isolated  situation,  which  makes  economy  in  freight  rates  par- 
ticularly desirable.  If  we  can  condense  must  to  forty  gallons, 
where  we  had  150  before,  the  reader  will  see  at  once  what  an 
immense  gain  this  will  be  in  freight.  Moreover  it  steps  in  at 
the  right  time  to  relieve  our  over  production  of  red  wines,  as 
mainly  red  wine  grapes  are  used.  If  we  can  ship  400$)  of 
condensed  must  to  England  or  any  part  of  Europe,  without 
danger  of  spoiling,  instead  of  150  gallons,  or  1500^)  of  wine, 
and  it  can  then  be  fermented  into  a  good,  sound  claret,  by 
the  simple  addition  of  the  same  amount  of  water  extracted 
here,  it  will  be  apparent  to  every  one  that  a  vast  amount  will 
be  saved  in  freight  alone  ;  and  that  we  should  welcome  this 
as  one  of  the  most  timely  innovations  we  have. 

There  are  at  present  two  must  condensers  in  operation  in  this 
State.  One  is  the  Yaryan  process,  of  which  Mr.  Thomas  D. 
Cone  is  agent,  and  who  has  made  a  trial  of  the  process  at  Mr. 
Krugs  cellar,  near  St.  Helena.  The  plant  is  small,  having  a 
capacity  of  ten  tons  a  day,  and  costing,  set  up  and  ready  for 
operation,  $2,500.  The  grapes  are  crushed  and  pressed,  and 
the  must  is  conducted  to  the  feed  tank  of  the  apparatus  by  an 
automatic  device.  From  here  it  is  drawn  through  a  lateral 
coil  of  pipes,  which  may  be  described  as  a  pipe  within  a  pipe, 
the  grape  must  is  in  the  inside  pipe,  and  this  is  in  a  larger  one 
surrounded  by  steam.  The  must  is  then  condensed  by  the 
action  of  the  steam,  aided  by  a  vacuum  system,  and  drawn 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  337 

into  a  separate  chamber  ;  while  the  water  taken  from  it  is 
drawn  into  another  direction  in  the  form  of  vapor,  and  after- 
wards condensed  and  discharged  through  the  waste  pipe.  The 
•condensed  must  is  drawn  by  a  pump  into  barrells  for  shipment. 
The  grape  must  in  its  condensed  form  is  almost  as  thick  as 
jelly,  and  contains  seventy  per  cent  of  sugar.  One  hundred 
and  fifty  gallons  of  must  are  condensed  to  forty  gallons,  and 
of  course  the  saving  of  freight  alone  is  a  large  item.  When  it 
reaches  its  destination  it  is  fermented  over  again  by  adding 
the  same  or  a  larger  quantity  of  water  than  has  been  extracted, 
and  thus  made  into  wine.  Mr.  Cone  has  not  been  able  to 
get  a  full  water  supply  at  Mr.  Krugs,  consequently  has  not 
been  able  to  operate  to  its  full  capacity.  He  hopes  to  dem- 
onstrate by  this  season's  operations  the  entire  practicability  of 
the  condenser,  which  would  be  within  the  means  of  one  or 
several  of  the  larger  producers,  who  cannot  avail  themselves 
of  the  large  condenser  on  the  Springmuehl  plan. 

THE    SPRINGMUEHLE    CONDENSER. 

A  party  consisting  of  chief  ex-officer  Wheeler,  Mr.  Charles 
Krug,  T.  D.  Cone  and  commissioner  Isaac  de  Turk  returned 
from  a  visit  to  Sonoma  County,  where  they  visited  the  large 
condenser  lately  established  one  mile  north  of  Clairville  by 
the  stockholders  of  the  American  Concentrated  Must  Co.,  J. 
de  Earth  Shorb,  President.  They  found  it  in  successful  op- 
eration. It  has  a  capacity  of  one  hundred  to  one  hundred 
and  fifty  tons  per  day,  but  as  their  crushing  and  pressing  faci- 
lities are  somewhat  incomplete,  they  are  only  working  about 
fifty  tons  per  day.  Only  claret  grapes  are  used,  for  which 
about  twelve  dollars  per  ton  is  paid.  The  grapes  are  crushed, 
pressed,  and  the  dry  pomace  afterwards  mixed  with  the  con- 
densed must,  so  that  all  the  wine  making  ingredients  are  pre- 
served which  the  grape  contains,  and  the  product  is  shipped 
direct  to  London,  England,  where  it  will  be  fermented  and 
turned  into  wine.  They  were  much  pleased  by  what  they 


338  GKAPE  CULTURE  AND 

saw,  and  think  that  the  concentration  of  must  in  large  quan- 
tities will  materially  assist  in  developing  the  wine  markets. 
Dr.  Springmuehl,  who  was  there,  stated  that  he  expected  next 
year  to  put  up  two  of  these  plants  himself,  one  at  Fresno  and 
one  at  Los  Angeles. 

The  Springmuehl  system  is  only  applied  and  applicable  to 
very  large  quantities,  as  the  inventor  contends  that  only  in  an 
apparatus  of  very  large  dimensions  a  perfect  product  can  be 
obtained.  The  Yaryan  process  is  applicable  to  smaller  quan- 
tities and  the  capabilities  of  individual  producers.  If  both 
are  successful,  they  will  have  a  very  beneficial  effect  on  our 
industry,  as  they  will  open  an  immediate  market  for  our  sur- 
plus red  wine  grapes,  and  assist  all  those  who  have  so  largely 
planted  them  without  having  the  facilities  and  the  knowledge 
to  make  them  into  wine. 

I  refer  here  to  the  essay  of  R.  D'Heureuse  on  air  treatment 
again.  It  is  a  remarkable  coincidence  that  he  should  at  that 
time  already  have  foreshadowed  the  necessities,  problems,  and 
processes,  which  our  decade  seems  just  about  to  solve,  and 
his  words  sound  like  prophecies.  May  they  be  fulfilled  to  a 
degree  which  surpasses  his  most  vivid  imaginings. 


WINE-MAKINCi  IN  CALIFORNIA.  339 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

BRANDY    AND    VINEGAR. 

That  a  large  quantity  of  brandy  could  and  already  is  made 
here,  from  the  pomace  and  lees  as  well  as  from  wine  itself, 
can  be  drawn  from  the  single  fact  that  1,500,000  gallons  of 
wine,  of  the  vintage  of  1885,  were  distilled  into  brandy.  Not 
being  very  familiar  with  distilling  myself,  I  shall  not  go  into 
detailed  descriptions  of  the  apparatus  and  process,  which  had 
better  be  conducted  by  experts,  should  it  become  advisable 
to  do  so.  The  small  producer  had  better  not  meddle  with  it, 
but  leave  it  to  his  more  wealthy  neighbors,  with  whom  he  can 
easily  make  arrangements  for  distilling,  if  advisable. 

Brandy  can  be  made  from  the  pomace  and  lees,  but  it  is 
generally  somewhat  harsh  and  rough,  and  the  prices  for 
brandy  have  been  so  low  of  late  years  that  it  has  hardly  paid 
to  utilize  these.  But  prices  for  brandy  have  advanced  lately, 
and  it  may  become  profitable  in  the  near  future  to  use  them. 
To  use  the  pomace  for  this  purpose,  it  is  generally  saturated 
with  water  when  freshly  pressed,  refermented,  and  the  liquid 
thus  obtained,  familiarly  called  piquette,  distilled  in  the 
usual  way.  To  make  brandy  from  the  lees,  they  are  thrown 
together  into  casks  when  racking  the  wine  in  winter,  diluted 
with  water,  and  also  distilled.  Then  also,  immense  quanti- 
ties of  milksour  and  defective  wines  are  distilled  every  year, 
and  it  is  about  the  best  that  can  be  done  with  wines  very  rich 
in  sacharine,  but  which  did  not  "  go  through  "in  fermentation; 
much  better  than  to  try  to  doctor  them  up,  and  ruin  the  mar- 
ket by  their  sale  as  wine.  It  is  self  evident  that  these  will 
make  a  large  amount  of  brandy,  as  they  contain  a  great  deal 
of  sugar*  and  the  more  sugar,  the  larger  the  yield  of  alcohol. 


340  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

But  the  finest  brandies  are  made  from  the  grapes  themselves 
distilled  in  their  fresh  or  partly  fermented  state,  and  it  has 
been  the  special  study  of  some  of  our  best  brandy  makers,  to 
find  varieties,  which  would  produce  the  mildest  and  finest 
flavored  brandy.  Mr.  Geo.  W.  West,  of  Stockton,  has  pro- 
duced a  very  fine  brandy  from  a  grape  called  Wests  White 
Prolific,  probably  a  Spanish  variety,  but  which  has  not  as  yet 
been  identified.  As  it  is  also  an  immense  bearer,  and  makes 
a  very  delicate  white  wine,  it  is  a  desirable  variety  to  plant, 
for  those  who  have  in  view  the  manufacture  of  brandy.  Gen.. 
Naglee,  of  San  Jose,  has  made  some  very  fine  brandies,  which 
connoissuers  contend  owed  their  high  quality  partly  to  the 
selection  of  varieties,  partly  to  careful  handling  and  ageing. 

It  may  yet  be  advisable  in  certain  of  the  southern  districts, 
where  grapes  ripen  early,  and  develop  a  large  amount  of  sugar 
to  use  the  product  mostly  for  liqueur  wines  and  the  manufac- 
ture of  fine  brandy.  The  sale  of  60,000  gallons  in  a  single 
year  by  Mr.  Rose,  who  has  always  made  a  very  fine  type  of 
brandy,  will  show  that  there  is  a  large  market  for  a  really- 
good  article.  In  this  direction,  planters  should  pay  more  at- 
tention to  the  heavy  bearing  white  varieties,  such  as  Burger 
and  Folle  Blanche.  The  latter  is  used  to  a  large  extent  in 
France  for  the  production  of  fine  Cognacs. 

But  the  smaller  producers  can  use  their  pomace,  or  at  least 
a  part  of  it,  for  vinegar.  This  needs  no  costly  buildings  in 
this  State,  nor  expensive  fixings.  A  shed  outside  of  the  cellar, 
but  on  the  sunny  side,  and  a  few  tanks  are  all  that  is  needed. 
As  the  pomace  contains  generally  sugar  enough,  if  fermented 
over,  all  it  needs  is  to  fill  them  with  pomace  and  water,  and 
leave  them  exposed  to  the  air,  when  acetic  fermentation  will 
set  in  in  a  short  time,  and  convert  the  water  into  fine  vinegar. 
They  should  however,  not  put  on  more  than  about  one-third 
of  the  quantity  of  water,  than  the  must  which  was  pressed 
from  the  grapes.  When  fermentation  is  over,  the  cj^ear  liquid 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  341 

may  be  drawn  from  below,  or  pressed.  Thus,  every  grape 
grower  can  have  his  own  pure  wine  vinegar,  infinitely  more 
wholesome  than  any  he  can  buy,  and  as  good  wine  vinegar  is 
higher  in  price  than  wine,  and  finds  a  ready  sale,  he  can  dis- 
pose of  the  surplus  at  a  paying  figure.  Imperfectly  ripened 
grapes  can  also  be  utilized  in  this  manner,  should  they  not 
contain  sugar  enough  for  wine.  In  that  case,  no  water  need 
be  added  ;  they  are  simply  crushed,  and  exposed  to  the  air. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

WINE  STORAGE    HOUSES.       THE    "  PURE  WINE  "    BILL. 

Any  one  at  all  conversant  with  the  history  and  growth  of 
the  industry  of  this  State,  must  acknowledge  that  one  of  our 
greatest  drawbacks  has  been  the  immature  state  in  which  our 
wines  were  thrown  on  the  market.  There  was  not  sufficient 
old,  sound  wine  held  over  from  the  former  vintages,  to  en- 
able the  dealers  to  meet  the  demands  of  the  trade,  and  the 
consequence  was  that  wines  were  shipped  East  when  hardly 
a  year  old.  With  the  large  quantity  of  albuminous  sub- 
stances our  heavy  musts  must  contain,  the  imperfect  manner 
in  which  many  were  made  and  fermented,  it  is  not  at  all  sur- 
prising, if,  in  spite  of  all  fining  and  clarifying,  these  wines 
should  come  to  their  consumers  cloudy  and  immature  in 
many  instances,  thus  seriously  injuring  the  trade  and  the  rep- 
utation of  California  wines.  That  this  is  a  great  detriment 
to  the  prosperity  of  our  calling,  will  at  once  become  appar- 
ent. Yet  the  greater  part  of  our  producers  are  not  able  to 
hold  their  wines  until  the  second  year.  They  need  their 


342  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

cellars  and  cooperage  again*  and  must  dispose  of  their  wines 
of  the  last  vintage  in  some  way,  before  the  coming  one  is 
upon  them.  The  dealers  even,  often  have  not  capacity  enough 
to  hold  large  quantities,  and  generally  buy  only  a  few  months 
in  advance  of  their  shipments.  Thus  California  wines,  in 
the  majority  of  cases,  come  to  the  consumer  in  an  imma- 
ture state,  without  having  developed  all  their  best  qualities. 

The  remedy  for  this  is  apparently  simple  and  near  at  hand. 
We  have  large  grain  warehouses  in  all  parts  of  the  State, 
where  the  producer  can  store  his  grain,  and  obtain  an  ad- 
vance upon  it.  Yet  good,  sound  wine,  stored  in  the  same 
manner,  would  offer  a  much  safer  investment  to  the  capital- 
ist than  wheat  or  other  grain,  which  is  subject  to  the  depre- 
dations of  rats  and  mice,  weevils  and  other  insects;  while 
good,  pure  wine  is  not  only  safe  from  all  these,  but  with 
proper  care  and  handling,  improves  and  gains  in  value  in- 
stead of  deteriorating,  as  grain  does. 

It  was  with  evident  satisfaction  that  I  visited  the  first  of 
these  establishments  on  the  Pacific  Coast,  the  immense  cellars 
of  the  "  California  Winery  and  Security  Company,  "  at  the 
corner  of  Brannan  and  Eighth  streets,  and  saw  that  this  long 
discussed  project  bids  fair  to  become  a  living  reality.  I  was 
conducted  over  the  immense  buildings  formerly  owned  by  the 
California  Sugar  Refinery  Company,  by  the  obliging  Secretary, 
Mr.  D.  M.  Cashin,  and  all  the  details  fully  explained.  The 
buildings  have  a  capacity  of  from  five  to  six  million  gallons  in 
puncheons,  and  about  700,000  gallons  have  been  stored  so 
far  ;  of  which  600,000  gallons  are  dry  wines,  100,000  gallons 
Angelica  and  Port.  Mr.  Cashin  tells  me  that  about  three 
millions  have  been  engaged  so  far,  and  although  this,  like  all 
new  enterprises  met  with  many  difficulties  ;  and  the  cleaning 
of  the  building  of  all  the  old  machinery,  etc.,  occasioned  a 
great  deal  of  delay,  they  are  now  fairly  under  way.  The 
building  keeps  a  very  even  temperature,  is  four  stories  high, 


WINE-MAKING    IN   CALIFORNIA.  343 

well  ventilated,  and  a  side  track  from  the  depot  of  the  South- 
ern Pacific  affords  the  greatest  shipping  facilities.  In  the 
equable  climate  of  San  Francisco,  with  a  mean  temperature  of 
60  F  in  the  building,  the  conditions  for  ageing  wine  could 
scarcely  be  better.  The  Company  have  secured  the  services 
of  Hon.  H.  Pellet  of  St.  Helena,  well  known  as  an  experi- 
enced wine  maker,  as  Superintendent  of  Cellars.  The  con- 
ditions under  which  they  receive  wine  for  storage  are  as 
follows  : 

1.  The  owner  must  send  by  express  two  sample  bottles  of 
wine    to  be  stored,  foi    examination,   with    particulars  as  to 
quantity  to  be  shipped,  and  capacity  of  casks  required.     One 
of  the  samples  is  submitted   to   Prof.    Rising,  State  Analyst, 
for   analysing,  the    other    submitted    to    the    cellar    superin- 
tendent.    If  approved    by    both,   the    Company  will  supply 
cooperage,  if  required,  containing  50,  60  and  160  gallons,  as 
requested  by  shippers. 

2.  Advances  will  be  made  on  pure,  sound  wine  only,  viz.: 
ten  cents  per  gallon  on  wine.     When  cooperage  is  required, 
it  will  be  supplied  by  the  company,  on  which  further  advances 
to  the  amount  of  actual  cost  will  be  provided.    .The  cost  of 
puncheons  will   be  about  six  cents  per  gallon.     The  rate  of 
interest  to  be  seven  per  cent,  annually. 

3.  Storage  will  be  at  the  rate  of  twenty-five  cents  per  ton 
per  month,  about  equal  to   160  to   170  gallons.     Fire  insur- 
ance at  the  rate  of  one  per  cent,  per  annum. 

4.  Racking  charges    will  be  estimated  according  to  the 
labor  employed,  and  will  be  about  fifteen  cents  per  puncheon 
per  annum. 

5.  An  escimate  of  all  charges,  interest  on  advances,  storage 
insurance  and  racking  charges,  will  amount  to  about  three  and 
a  half  cents  per  gallon  per  annum,  and  the  value  of  the  wine 
will  doubtless  increase  to  double  its  ruling  rates,  by  its  matur- 
ing under  expert  treatment  and  in  an  even  temperature. 


344  riRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

The  owner  has  the  privilege  of  fixing  the  price  at  which 
he  is  willing  to  sell  when  the  wine  is  marketable,  which  will 
be  the  lowest  limit  at  which  it  will  be  sold  by  the  company  to 
buyers.  The  advances  made  to  him,  and  the  storage  offered, 
will  enable  him  to  carry  on  his  operations,  empty  his  cellar, 
and  receive  the  benefits  accruing  from  the  increased  value  of 
the  wine.  On  the  other  hand,  it  will  enable  even  the  dealer 
to  replenish  his  stock  easier,  to  better  advantage  and  of  more 
uniform  quality  than  by  the  present  system  of  making  selec- 
tions all  over  the  State;  and  especially  the  Eastern  and  foreign 
trade  will  find  it  to  their  advantage  to  purchase,  where  they 
can  find  large  and  uniform  quantities  of  well  developed  and 
matured  wine.  These  advantages  are  so  striking  that  they 
must  be  apparent  to  every  one,  and  I  hope  that  this  is  but 
the  initiatory  step  to  a  general  system  of  wine  warehouses  on 
our  Coast. 

In  connection  with  this,  it  may  not  be  amiss  to  say 
a  few  words  in  regard  to  pure  wines,  and  the  so  called 
"  Pure  wine  bill."  I  believe  that  the  adulteration  of  wine 
has  never  been  practiced  to  a  very  great  extent  on  this  coast, 
but  that  the  bad  repute  in  which  some  of  our  wines  were  held, 
arose  more  from  their  imperfect  and  faulty  handling,  than 
from  real  adulterations.  That  some  unscrupulous  persons 
used  cherry  juice,  and  even  more  injurious  substances  for 
coloring  and  smoothing  over  defects  in  some  of  the  wines  of 
inferior  grade,  cannot  be  doubted;  but  hardly  to  the  extent 
which  some  asserted.  For  this,  the  prevailing  custom  of 
selling  whole  cellars  of  wine,  good,  bad  and  indifferent,  to  the 
merchant,  and  compelling  him,  so  to  say,  to  take  a  lot  of 
trash,  if  he  also  wanted  the  really  good  wines  a  cellar  con- 
tained, is  in  a  great  measure  to  blame,  as  much  of  this  trash 
was  not  saleable  unless  doctored  to  some  extent,  and  the 
merchant  of  course  tried  to  get  his  money  back  out  of  it. 
Be  that  as  it  may,  it  became  necessary  and  seemed  advisable 


WINE-MAKING    IN  CALIFORNIA*  345 

to  prevent  this,  and  make  a  demonstration  to  show  the  world 
what  we  consider  pure  wine.  With  this  intent,  and  for  that 
purpose  the  present  law  was  designed,  and  passed  our  Legis- 
lature, which  I  insert  here,  together  with  explanations  by  the 
Chief  Viticultural  Officer,  and  opinion  of  Attorney-General 
Johnson.  Its  constitutionality  is  now  being  tested,  and  I 
hope  it  will  be  of  great  benefit  when  effectually  carried  out. 
Should  it  not  be  found  perfect  or  practical,  it  can  be 
amended  so  as  to  become  so,  and  will  thus  help  to  raise  the 
standard  of  our  wines.  The  dealers  will  quit  buying  poor 
wines,  which  will  then  go  to  the  distillery,  and  our  wine 
makers  be  compelled  to  take  more  pains  than  has  been  done 
so  far,  to  produce  a  really  saleable  article. 

SUBSTITUTE    FOR    SENATE    BILL,    NO    219,   ADOPTED    IN  SENATE 
FEBRUARY    17,    1887 AN    ACT    TO  PROHIBIT   THE  SOPHIS- 
TICATION AND  ADULTERATION  OF  WINE,  AND  TO 
PREVENT  FRAUD    IN  THE    MANUFACTURE 
AND    SALE    THEREOF. 

The  people  of  the  State  of  California,  represented  in  Senate 
and  Assembly.,  do  enact  as  follows: 

SECTION  i .  For  the  purposes  of  this  Act,  pure  wine  shall 
be  defined  as  follows:  The  juice  of  grapes  fermented,  pre- 
served or  fortified  for  use  as  a  beverage,  or  as  a  medicine, 
by  methods  recognized  as  legitimate  according  to  the  provi- 
sions of  this  Act;  unfermented  grape  juice,  containing  no  ad- 
dition of  distilled  spirits,  may  be  denominated  according  to 
popular  custom  and  demand  as  wine  only  when  described  as 
"  unfermented  wine/''  and  shall  be  deemed  pure  only  when 
preserved  for  use  as  a  beverage  or  medicine,  in  accordance 
with  the  provisions  of  this  Act.  Pure  grape  must  shall  be 
deemed  to  be  the  juice  of  grapes,  only,  in  its  natural  condi- 
tion, whether  expressed  or  mingled  with  the  pure  skins,  seeds, 
or  stems  of  grapes.  Pure  condensed  grape  must  shall  be 


34(>  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

deemed  to  be  pure  grape  must  from  which  water  has  been  ex- 
tracted by  evaporation,  for  purposes  of  preservation  or  increase 
of  saccharine  strength.  Dry  wine  is  that  produced  by  com- 
plete fermentation  of  saccharine  contained  in  must.  Sweet 
wine  is  that  which  contains  more  or  less  saccharine  apprecia- 
ble to  the  taste.  Fortified  wine  is  that  wine  to  which  dis- 
tilled spirits  have  been  added  to  increase  alcoholic  strength, 
for  purposes  of  preservation  only,  and  shall  be  held  to  be 
pure,  when  the  spirits  so  used  are  the  product  of  the  grape 
only.  Pure  champagne  or  sparkling  wine  is  that  which  con- 
tains carbonic  acid  gas  or  effervescence  produced  only  by  nat- 
ural fermentation  of  saccharine  matter  of  musts,  or  partially 
fermented  wine  in  bottle. 

SEC.  2.  In  the  fermentation,  preservation,  and  fortifica- 
tion of  pure  wine,  it  shall  be  specifically  understood  that  no 
materials  shall  be  used  intended  for  substitutes  for  grapes,  or 
any  part  of  grapes;  no  coloring  matters  shall  be  added  which 
are  not  the  pure  products  of  grapes  during  fermentation,  or 
by  extraction  from  grapes  with  the  aid  of  pure  grape  spirits; 
no  foreign  fruit  juices,  and  no  spirits  imported  from  foreign 
countries,  whether  pure  or  compounded  with  fruit  juices,  or 
other  material  not  the  pure  product  of  grapes,  shall  be  used  for 
any  purpose;  no  aniline  dyes,  salicylic  acid,  glycerine,  alum,  or 
other  chemical  antiseptics  or  ingredients  recognized  as  dele- 
terious to  the  health  of  consumers,  or  as  injurious  to  the  repu- 
tation of  wine  as  pure,  shall  be  permitted;  and  no  distilled 
spirits  shall  be  added  except  for  the  sole  purpose  of  preserva- 
tion and  without  the  intention  of  enabling  trade  to  lengthen 
the  volume  of  fortified  dry  wine  by  the  addition  of  water  or 
other  wine,  weaker  in  alcoholic  strength. 

SEC.  3.  In  the  fermentation  and  preservation  of  pure 
wine,  and  during  the  operations  of  fining  or  clarifying,  re- 
moving defects,  improving  qualities,  blending  and  maturing, 
no  methods  shall  be  employed  which  essentially  conflict  with 


WINK-MAKING   IN    CALIFORNIA.  347 

the  provisions  of  the  preceding  sections  of  this  Act,  and  no 
materials  shall  be  used  for  the  promotion  of  fermentation,  or 
the  assistance  of  any  of  the  operations  of  wine  treatment 
which  are  injurious  to  the  consumer  or  the  reputation  of  wine 
as  pure  ;  provided,  that  it  shall  be  expressly  understood  that 
the  practices  of  using  pure  tannin  in  small  quantities,  leaven 
to  excite  fermentation  only,  and  not  to  increase  the  material 
for  the  production  of  alcohol ;  water  before  or  during,  but  not 
after  fermentation,  for  the  purpose  of  decreasing  the  saccharine 
strength  of  musts  to  enable  perfect  fermentation  ;  and  the 
natural  products  of  grapes  in  the  pure  forms  as  they  exist  in 
pure  grape  musts,  skins,  and  seeds ;  sulphur  fumes,  to  disin- 
fect cooperage  and  prevent  disease  in  wine  ;  and  pure  gela- 
tinous and  albuminous  substances,  for  the  sole  purpose  of 
assisting  fining  or  clarification,  shall  be  specifically  permitted 
in  the  operations  hereinbefore  mentioned,  in  accordance  with 
recognized  legitimate  custom. 

SEC.  4.  It  shall  be  unlawful  to  sell,  or  expose,  or  offer  to 
sell  under  the  name  of  wine,  or  grape  musts,  or  condensed 
musts,  or  under  any  names  designating  pure  wines,  or  pure 
musts  as  hereinbefore  classified  and  defined,  or  branded, 
labeled,  or  designated  in  any  way  as  wine  or  musts,  or  by  any 
name  popularly  and  commercially  used  as  a  designation  of 
wine  produced  from  grapes,  such  as  Claret,  Burgundy,  Hock, 
Sauterne,  Port,  Sherry,  Madeira  and  Angelica,  any  substance 
or  compound,  except  pure  wine,  or  pure  grape  must,  or  pure 
grape  condensed  must,  as  defined  by  this  Act,  and  produced 
in  accordance  with  and  subject  to  restrictions  herein  set  forth; 
provided  ;  that  this  Act  shall  not  apply  to  liquors  imported 
from  any  foreign  country,  which  are  taxed  upon  entry  by  cus- 
tom laws  in  accordance  with  a  specific  duty  and  contained  in 
original  packages  or  vessels  and  prominently  branded,  labeled, 
or  marked  so  as  to  be  known  to  all  persons  as  foreign  pro- 
ducts, excepting,  however,  when  such  liquors  shall  contain 


348  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

adulterations  "of  artificial  coloring  matters,  antiseptic  chem- 
icals, or  other  ingredients  known  to  be  deleterious  to  the 
health  of  consumers  ;  and  provided  further,  that  this  Act  shall 
not  apply  to  currant  wine,  gooseberry  wine,  or  wines  made 
from  other  fruits  than  the  grape,  which  are  labeled  or  branded 
and  designated  and  sold,  or  offered  or  exposed  for  sale  under 
names  including  the  word  wine,  but  also  expressing  distinctly 
the  fruit  from  which  they  are  made,  as  gooseberry  wine, 
elderberry  wine,  or  the  like.  Any  violation  of  any  of  the 
provisions  of  any  of  the  preceding  sections  shall  be  a  misde- 
meanor. 

SEC.  5.  Exceptions  from  the  provisions  of  this  Act  shall 
be  made  in  the  case  of  pure  champagne,  or  sparkling  wine,  so 
far  as  to  permit  the  use  of  chrystalized  sugar  in  sweetening  the 
same  according  to  usual  custom,  but  in  no  other  respect. 

SEC.  6.  In  all  sales  and  contracts  for  sale,  production,  or 
delivery  of  products  defined  in  this  Act,  such  products,  in  the 
absence  of  a  written  agreement  to  the  contrary,  shall  be  pre- 
sumed to  be  pure  as  herein  defined,  and  such  sale  or  con- 
tract shall,  in  the  absence  of  such  an  agreement,  be  void,  if  it 
be  established  that  the  products  so  sold  or  contracted  for  were 
not  pure  as  herein  defined.  And  in  such  case  the  conceal- 
ment of  the  true  character  of  such  products  shall  constitute 
actual'  fraud  for  which  damages  may  be  recovered,  and  in  a 
judgment  for  damages,  reasonable  attorney  fees  to  be  fixed  by 
the  Court,  shall  be  taxed  as  costs. 

SEC.  7.  The  Controller  of  the  State  shall  cause  to  have 
engraved  plates,  from  wrhich  shall  be  printed  labels  which 
shall  set  forth  that  the  wine  covered  by  such  labels  is  pure 
California  wine  in  accordance  with  this  Act,  and  leaving 
blanks  for  the  name  of  the  particular  kind  of  wine,  and  the 
name  or  names  of  the  seller  of  the  wine  and  place  of  business. 
These  labels  shall  be  of  two  forms  or  shapes,  one  a  narrow 
strip  to  cap  over  the  corks  of  bottles,  the  other,  round  or 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  349 

square,  and  sufficiently  large,  say  three  inches  square,  to 
cover  the  bungs  of  packages  in  which  wine  is  sold.  Such 
labels  shall  be  furnished  upon  proper  application  to  actual  resi- 
dents, and  to  be  used  in  this  State  only,  and  only  to  those  who 
are  known  to  be  growers,  manufacturers,  traders,  or  handlers, 
and  bottlers  of  California  wine,  and  such  parties  will  be  required 
to  file  a  sworn  statement  with  said  Controller,  setting  forth 
that  his  or  their  written  application  for  such  labels  is  and  will 
be  for  his  or  their  sole  use  and  benefit,  and  that  he  or  they 
will  not  give,  sell,  or  loan  such  label  to  any  other  person  or 
persons  whomsoever.  Such  labels  shall  be  paid  for  at  the 
same  rate  and  prices  as  shall  be  found  to  be  the  actual  cost 
price  to  the  State,  and  shall  be  supplied  from  time  to  time  as 
needed  upon  the  written  application  of  such  parties  as  are  be- 
.fore  mentioned.  Such  label  when  affixed  to  bottle  or  wine 
package  shall  be  so  affixed,  that  by  drawing  the  cork  from 
bottle  or  opening  the  bung  of  package,  such  label  shall  be 
destroyed  by  such  opening  ;  and  before  affixing  such  labels 
all  blanks  shall  be  filled  out  by  stating  the  variety  or  kind  of 
wine  that  is  contained  in  such  bottle  or  package,  and  also  by 
the  name  or  names  and  post  office  address  of  such  grower, 
manufacturer,  trader,  handler,  or  bottler  of  such  wine. 

SEC.  8.  It  is  desired  and  required  that  all  and  eveay 
grower,  manufacturer,  trader,  handler,  or  bottler  of  California 
wine,  when  selling  or  putting  up  for  sale  any  California  wine, 
or  when  shipping  California  wine  to  parties  to  whom  sold,  shall 
plainly  stencil,  brand,  or  have  printed  where  it  will  be  easily 
.  seen,  first,  "  Pure  California  Wine,"  and  secondly,  his  name, 
or  the  firm's  name,  as  the  case  may  be,  both  on  label  of  bottle 
or  package  in  which  wine  is  sold  and  sent,  or  he  may,  in  lieu 
thereof,  if  he  so  prefers  and  elects,  affix  the  label  which  has 
been  provided  for  in  Section  7.  It  shall  be  unlawful  to  affix 
any  such  stamp  or  label  as  above  provided  to  any  vessel  con- 
taining any  substance  other  than  pure  wine,  as  herein  defined, 


350  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

or  to  prepare  or  use  on  any  vessel  containing  any  liquid,  any 
imitation  or  counterfeit  of  such  stamp,  or  any  paper  in  the 
similitude  or  resemblance  thereof,  or  any  paper  of  such  form 
and  appearance  as  to  be  calculated  to  mislead  or  deceive  any 
unwary  person,  or  cause  him  to  suppose  the  contents  of  such 
vessel  to  be  pure  wine.  It  shall  be  unlawful  for  any  person 
or  persons,  other  than  the  ones  for  whom  such  stamps  were 
procured,  to  in  any  way  use  such  stamps,  or  to  have  posses- 
sion of  the  same.  A  violation  of  any  of  the  provisions  of  this 
section  shall  be  a  misdemeanor,  and  punishable  by  fine  of  not 
less  than  fifty  dollars  and  not  more  than  five  hundred  dollars, 
or  by  imprisonment  in  the  county  jail  for  a  term  of  not  ex- 
ceeding ninety  days,  or  by  both  such  fine  and  imprisonment. 
All  moneys  collected  by  virtue  of  prosecutions  had  against 
persons  violating  any  provisions  of  this  or  any  preceeding  sec- 
tions shall  go  one-half  to  the  informer  and  one-half  to  the 
District  Attorney  prosecuting  the  same. 

SEC.  9.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  Controller  to  keep  an 
account,  in  a  book  to  be  kept  for  that  purpose,  of  all  stamps, 
the  number,  design,  time  when,  and  to  whom  furnished.  The 
parties  procuring  the  same  are  hereby  required  to  return  to 
the  Controller  semi-annual  statements  under  oath,  setting 
forth  the  number  used,  and  how  many  remains  on  hand. 
Any.  violation  of  this  section,  by  the  person  receiving  such 
stamps,  is  a  misdemeanor. 

SEC  10.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  any  and  all  persons  re- 
ceiving such  stamps  to  use  the  same  only  in  their  business, 
in  no  manner  or  in  nowise  to  allow  the  same  to  be  disposed 
of  except  in  the  manner  authorized  by  this  Act ;  to  not  allow 
the  same  to  be  used  by  any  other  person  or  persons.  It 
shall  be  their  duty  to  become  satisfied  that  the  wine  contained 
in  the  barrels  or  bottles  is  all  that  said  label  imports  as  de- 
fined by  this  Act.  That,  they  will  use  the  said  stamps  only 
in  this  State  and  shall  not  permit  the  same  to  part  from  their 


AVINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFOKNI A.  351 

possession,  except  with  the  barrels,  packages  or  bottles  upon 
which  they  are  placed  as  provided  by  this  Act.  A  violation 
of  any  of  the  provisions  of  this  section  is  hereby  made  a  felony. 

SEC.  12.  This  Act  shall  take  effect  and  be  in  force 
ninety  days  after  its  passage. 

This  law  goes  into  effect  and  becomes  operative  on  June 
5th,  1887. 

In  section  ten  of  the  above  law  will  be  found  the  following: 

"  It  shall  be  their  (those  employing  the  stamp)  duty  to  be- 
come satisfied  that  the  wine  contained  in  the  barrels  or  bot- 
tles is  all  that  said  label  imports." 

As  there  are  many  dealers  who  will  employ  the  stamp  on 
wines,  bottled  or  packed  by  them  in  small  packages  ;  which 
wine  they  receive  from  others  in  larger  packages,  coming  to 
them  covered  by  the  State  stamp  of  purity,  the  question 
arises  as  to  the  liability  of  such  bottler  and  what  would  con- 
stitute in  the  eye  of  the  law,  the  "  duty"  of  the  said  bottler 
in  determining  that  the  wine  employed  was  true  to  label. 

The  answer  to  this  question  has  been  kindly  furnished  to 
me  as  follows,  by  Attorney-General  Johnson  : 

SACRAMENTO,  May  iQth,  1887. 
J.  H.  WHEELER,  ESQ., 

204  Montgomery  St.,  San  Francisco. 

Dear  Sir: — Answering  your  inquiries  as  to  the  Act  to  pro- 
hibit the  sophistication  and  adulteration  of  wine,  &c.,  ap- 
proved March  7th,  1887. 

You  make  a  hypothetical  case  for  my  opinion:  "  A  buys 
an  adulterated  wine  from  B,  with  a  pure  wine  stamp  over  the 
bung.  A  bottles  the  wine  and  puts  the  pure  wine  stamp  on 
the  bottle,  believing  the  wine  to  be  pure.  Subsequently  the 
wine  is  found  to  be  not  pure.  Is  A  then  liable  ?  " 

It  won't  do  for  A  to  trust  implicitly  B  or  his  stamps.  The 
Act  requires  some  diligence  on  A's  part.  It  says  that  it  shall 
23 


352  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

be  his  duty  to  become  satisfied  that  the  wine  contained 
in  the  barrels  or  bottles,  is  all  that  said  label  imports  as  de- 
fined by  this  Act. 

A  therefore  must  not  be  guilty  of  criminal  negligence. 
That  would  be  as  bad  as  if  A's  intent  was  to  palm  off  ad- 
ulterated or  impure  wine. 

But  if  A  makes  a  reasonable  effort  in  good  faith  to  satisfy 
himself  that  the  wine  is  all  that  the  label  imports  and  is  sat- 
isfied after,  using  due  diligence,  he  would  not  be  guilty  of  a 
misdemeanor,  if  he  was  mistaken  or  imposed  upon.  It  is 
the  good  faith  of  A  and  the  use  of  due  diligence  and  scrutiny 
in  his  investigation,  which  the  law  requires.  I  do  not  think 
an  analytic  test  is  necessarily  required  to  be  applied  by  A. 
That  might  not  at  all  times  be  practicable.  But  he  must 
recollect  that  there  is  a  duty  cast  upon  him  to  satisfy  himself 
by  available  and  reasonably  reliable  means  that  the  wine  is 
what  the  label  imports,  and  he  must  be  satisfied. 

An  analysis,  however,  would  be  the  most  satisfactory  way 
to  test  the  wine. 

Very  Truly  Yours, 

G.  A.  JOHNSON,  Attorney  General. 

Other  than  this  the  law  seems  to  be  sufficiently  clear  to 
need  no  further  explanation.  Particular  attention  is  called 
to  Section  6,  which  renders  the  sale  of  anything  purporting 
to  be  wine  —  in  the  absence  of  a  written  agreement  to  the 
contrary  —  void  and  the  vender  liable  for  damages  if  it  be 
not  pure  as  specified  in  the  law.  According  to  the  framers 
of  this  law,  this,  whether  it  bears  the  pure  wine  stamp  or  not, 
is  the  effective  clause,  and  coupling  with  it  the  liberal  recom- 
pense to  the  informer  and  the  prosecuting  attorney,  we  have 
incentive  sufficient  to  greatly  facilitate  its  enforcement. 

WINE    ANALYSIS. 

Whenever  it  becomes  necessary  or  desirable  that  a  wine  be 
analyzed  for  the  benefit  of  a  dealer,  vine  grower,  or  any  per- 


WINE-MAKING    IN   CALIFORNIA.  353 

son  whatsoever,  pursuant  to  the  enforcement  of  the  above 
law,  a  sample  of  the  same  may  be  sent  to  the  Secretary 
of  the  Viticultural  Commission,  by  whom  an  analysis  will  be 
procured  from  the  State  Analyst  and  a  ready  report  made  as 
to  its  purity.  The  machinery  for  this  latter  work  was  ob- 
tained in  an  Act  passed  by  the  State  Legislature  entitled: 

An  Act  to  Provide  for  Analyzing  Minerals ',  Mineral  Wa- . 
ters  and  other  Liquids,  and  the  Medicinal  Plants  of  the  State 
of  California,  and  Foods  and  Drugs,  to  Prevent  Adulteration 
of  the  same.  Approved  March  pth,  1885. 

This  law  provides  that  the  Governor  of  the  State  shall 
appoint  one  of  the  Professors  of  the  University  of  California, 
as  State  Analyst,  whose  duty  it  shall  be  to  analyze  all  arti- 
cles of  food,  drugs,  medicines,  medicinal  plants,  &:c.,  manu- 
factured, sold,  or  used  in  this  State,  when  the  same  shall  be 
properly  submitted  to  him.  The  law  then  prescribes  the 
methods  by  which  the  samples  of  various  articles  shall  be 
obtained  and  submitted  for  analysis,  and  specifies  that  the 
Board  of  State  Viticultural  Commissioners  shall  have  the 
privilege  of  submitting  to  the  State  Analyst  samples  of  wines, 
grape  spirits  or  liquids  or  compounds  in  imitation  thereof 
for  analysis,  as  follows: 

Any  person  desiring  an  analysis  of  such  products  may  sub- 
mit the  same  to  the  Secretary  of  the  State  Viticultural  Com- 
missioners, who  will  transmit  them  to  the  State  Analyst  in 
the  manner  prescribed.  The  analysis  shall  be  made  and  the 
certificate  of  the  same  shall  be  forwarded  to  the  Secretary  of 
the  Viticultural  Commission.  This  certificate,  as  the  law 
reads,  shall  be  held  in  all  courts  of  this  State,  as  prima  facie 
evidence  of  the  properties  of  the  articles  analyzed  by  him. 

Thus  it  may  be  seen  that  there  lies  within  the  reach  of  every 
wine  maker  or  dealer,  an  easy  means  of  obtaining  without  ex- 
pense, uncontrovertible  evidence  wherever  fraud  is  supposed. 

Unfortunately,  this  law  appropriated  no  money  for  the  car- 


354  GRAPE  CL'LTUKE   AND 

rying  on  of  the  work  required.  Realizing  the  importance  of 
such  a  bureau  and  its  maintenance,  however,  the  Viticultu- 
ral  Commission  has  shared  its  endowment  with  the  State 
Analyst  and  will  continue  to  do  so  in  order  to  lend  all  of  the 
aid  they  can  to  the  support  of  the  law.  Pursuant  to  the  re- 
quirements of  the  Act,  W.  B.  Rising,  Professor  of  Chemistry 
at  the  State  University,  was  duly  appointed  State  Analyst. 
An  assistant  has  been  employed,  and  he  is  now  ready  for  and 
engaged  in  the  examination  of  wines,  the  purity  of  which 
can  be  quickly  determined  and  the  report  made  available  in 
a  few  days  after  delivery  of  the  samples  to  our  Secretary. 

Concerning  the  expense  of  maintaining  the  State  Analyst's 
Bureau,  itis  hoped  that  the  Board  of  Regents  of  the  University, 
in  their  manifest  desire  to  aid  the  cause  of  viticulture,  and  in 
view  of  the  liberal  endowment  made  them  in  the  last  Legis- 
lature, will  come  to  the  assistance  of  the  Commission  in  the 
support  of  the  analytic  work. 

THE  STAMPS. 

Section  seven  provides  that  on  application  the  necessary 
stamps  shall  be  furnished  by  the  controller. 

Here  again,  the  Legislature  made  no  appropriation  with 
which  to  purchase  the  plates  necessary  for  printing  the  stamps 
and  the  liberality  of  the  Viticultural  Commission  is  drawn 
upon,  they  having  consented  to  supply  the  first  cost. 

One  hundred  thousand  stamps  have  already  been  printed 
by  the  State  Controller,  and  will  be  ready  for  distribution 
when  needed.  Their  cost  will  be  $1.50  per  M.  with  ex- 
pense of  delivery  added.  The  stamp  for  bottles  may  be 
easily  affixed  thereto,  that  placed  over  the  bung  of  a  barrel 
will  need  the  protection  of  a  piece  of  tin  such  as  is  ordin- 
arily affixed  to  the  bung  of  a  barrel  previous  to  shipping. 

The  following  committee  of  vine  growers  to  see  to  the  en- 
forcement of  the  law  has  been  appointed  by  H.  W.  Mclntyre, 
President  of  the  State  Vine  Growers'  and  Wine  Makers' 


WINE-MAKING    IN   CALIFORNIA.  355 

Association:  Hon.  M.  M.  Estee,  Napa;  J.  B.  J.  Portal, 
San  Jose;  Capt.  Chamon  de  St.  Hubert,  Fresno;  J.  H. 
Drurnmond,  Glen  Ellen;  H.  A.  Pellet,  St.  Helena;  Jacob 
-Schramm,  Calistoga;  H.  A.  Meriam,  Los  Gatos;  B.  H. 
Upham,  San  Francisco;  A.  Erz,  Anaheim;  Julius  P.  Smith, 
Livermore.  To  these  others  will  be  added  soon.  This  com- 
mittee will  proceed  to  collect  miscellaneous  samples  of  wine 
found  throughout  the  city  and  state,  which,  if  proving  spurious, 
will  be  turned  over  to  the  district  attorney  and  the  case  sub- 
mitted to  the  courts. 

The  pure  wine  Act,  at  the  time  of  its  passage  by  the  last 
Legislature  was  the  subject  of  considerable  criticism  and  dis- 
pute. 

It  was  discussed  at  great  length  before  the  public,  but, 
having  ended  in  adoption  and  approval,  it  is  to  be  hoped  that 
the  little  inconvenience  it  may  make  a  few  will  be  amply  com- 
pensated for  by  its  good  effect  on  the  general  industry.  If  it 
opens  the  way  to  any  fraud  we  may  be  sure  this  clause  will 
be  used  by  the  enemy;  to  counteract  the  effect  of  which 
every  good  feature  of  the  law  must  be  brought  into  requisition. 

Many  demanded  the  use  of  certain  materials  in  preparing 
wine,  which  materials  to  them  seemed  harmless,  but  which 
had  to  be  denied  in  order  to  exclude  other  more  damaging 
adulterants.  For  example,  we  may  well  afford  for  the  market 
within  our  own  State  to  abandon  the  use  of  ordinary  grain 
spirits  in  fortifying  wines  if  by  the  law  we  are  able  to  stop  the 
extensive  and  unhealthful  practice  of  stretching  produced  by 
the  same  means. 

Nor  must  we  forget  the  effect  of  this  Act  in  enlarging  the 
demand  for  grape  spirits,  and  thereby  causing  the  distilling  of 
poor  wines,  which  would  otherwise  be  fortified  by  neutral 
spirits,  and  usurp  the  place  of  better  wines.  By  the  Act  a 
native  spirit  is  substituted  for  an  imported  one. 

The  healthful  effect  of  our  wines  and  a  consequent  increased 


356  GRAPE   GUI/TURK   AND 

local  consumption,  will  be  greatly  promoted  by  substitution  of 
grape  spirits  for  cheaper  poisonous  spirits. 

Several  have  already  indicated  their  intention  of  using  the 
State  stamp  on  small  packages.  On  bottles,  particularly,, 
will  the  practice  be  adopted,  and  here  it  will  be  of  use. 
When  the  public  demand  the  pure  wine  stamp  on  the  bottles, 
as  they  will  do  when  knowing  its  value  and  finding  some  mer- 
chants who  employ  it;  the  trade  will  be  forced  to  supply  them 
pure  wine,  and  that  under  a  California  label.  A  large  por- 
tion of  the  native  wine  sold  in  bottles,  goes  today  to  the  pub- 
lic with  a  ficticious  label  of  foreign  import.  The  presence  of 
the  stamp  will  bring  to  public  recognition  the  name  and  trade 
mark  of  California  producers,  where  heretofore  the  bottle  has 
been  branded  "  Chateaux  La  Rose,"  "  Chateau  Margaux  "or 
"St.  Julien." 

Whether  the  use  of  the  stamp  on  large  packages  going  out 
of  the  State  will  be  harmful  or  otherwise,  the  use  of  the  same 
on  bottled  wines  must  certainly  result  in  good. 

It  has  been  suggested  that  the  Controller's  list  of  those 
dealers  making  application  for  the  stamp  will  prove  a  valuable 
directory  for  the  use  of  purchasers.  It  is  to  be  hoped  it  may. 

Dealers  have  now  had  ample  time  for  working  off  their  sus- 
picious products,  and  every  opportunity  has  been  given  those, 
who — perhaps  with  honest  motives  at  first — have  been  forced 
into  the  use  of  cheapening  processes  by  harmful  competition, 
to  start  anew  on  a  fair,  square  basis  with  an  easy  redress  from 
others  competing  by  dishonest  means. 

Whatever  effect  this  law  may  have,  it  will  aid  in  forming 
a  standard  of  excellence  founded  on  quality  and  not  alone  on 
price.'  The  latter  has  proved  the  ruinous  measure  by  which 
our  wines  have  been  gauged  and  marketed,  a  measure  by 
which  they  have  been  caused  to  degenerate  rather  than  ad- 
vance. Good  wine  continues  to  improve  and  will  pay  to  keep. 
Poor  wine  will  rapidly  deteriorate,  and  if  not  allowed  to  be 


WINE-MAKING   IN   CALIFORNIA.  357 

drugged,    must  go  either  to   the  distillery  or  be  made  into 
vinegar. 

If  this  law  becomes  effective,  which  depends  mainly  on  the 
patronage  of  the  wine-drinking  public,  it  will  double  the 
California  market  lor  good  wine.  Its  success  will  send  the 
poor  wine  to  the  distillery,  the  sale  of  which  has  dragged 
down  the  price  of  the  better  product  to  ruinous  figures; 
figures  which  preclude  the  possibility  of  marketing  any  choicer 
grades  for  the  general  public. 

J.   H.   WHEELER. 

Chief  Viticultural  Officer. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

WINE     STATISTICS. 

These  are  very  difficult  to  obtain  in  this  busy  State,  where 
everybody  seems  to  have  his  hands  full,  and  seems  to  be  unwill- 
ing or  unable  to  attend  to  anything  else.  But  a  few  items  which 
will  give  a  general  idea  of  the  magnitude  of  the  industry  may- 
be of  interest  to  my  readers,  as  they  will  show  the  rapid  in- 
crease from  small  beginnings. 

The  Secretary  of  the  State  Board  of  equalization,  Hon.  E. 
W.  Maslin,  reports  the  entire  number  of  acres  in  vines  in  the 
State,  by  counties  from  the  report  of  the  County  Assessors  to 
be  121,440  acres,  distributed  as  follows  : 

Alameda,  3,451  acres;  Amador,  846  acres;  Butte,  247 
acres;  Calaveras,  1,440  acres;  Colusa,  506  acres;  Contra 
Costa,  3,000  acres;  Del  Norte,  4  acres;  El  Dorado,  1,570 
acres;  Fresno,  10,185  acres  ;  Inyo,  95  acres ;  Kern,  45  acres; 


358  '          GRAPE   CULTURE   AND 

Lake,  985  acres;  Los  Angeles,  17,000  acres;  Marin,  493  acres; 
Mariposa,  500  acres;  Mendocino,  108  acres;  Monterey,  500 
acres;  Napa,  14,431  acres;  Nevada,  235  acres;  Placer,  2,221 
acres  ;  Sacramento,  6,465  acres  ;  San  Benito,  no  acres  ;  San 
Bernardino,  9,165  acres;  San  Joaquin,  1,739  acres ;  San 
Luis  Obispo,  275  acres;  San  Mateo,  625  acres;  Santa  Bar- 
bara, 527  acres  ;  Santa  Clara,  9,423  acres  ;  Shasta,  147  acres  ; 
Siskiyou,  4  acres;  Sonoma,  21,638  acres;  Stanislaus,  498 
acres;  Sutter,  430  acres;  Tehama,  4,972  acres;  Trinity,  20 
acres;  Tulare,  1,229  acres  ;  Tuolumne,  890 acres  ;  Ventura, 
800  acres;  Yolo,  3,191  acres;  Yuba,  165  acres. 

The  Secretary  of  the  State  Viticultural  Commission,  Mr. 
Clarence  J.  Wetmore,  however,  thinks  this  estimate  altogether 
too  low,  and  estimates  the  number  of  acres,  from  information 
received  of  the  vineyard  owners  direct,  at  about  150,000. 
The  assesors  have  neglected  in  many  cases  to  give  the  number 
of  acres  for  table,  and  market,  and  for  wine.  As  far  as  re- 
ported from  about  forty  counties,  there  are  13,760  acres  of 
table  grapes,  and  59,036  acres  of  wine  grapes. 

In  this  connection,  the  wine  product  of  the  State  for  the 
past  ten  years  will  be  of  interest.  It  is  as  follows: 

In  1876,  3,750,000  gallons;  1877,  4,000,000  gallons; 
1^78,  5,000,000  gallons;  1879,  5,000,000  gallons;  1880, 
8,500,000  gallons ;  1881,  7,000,000  gallons;  1882,  10,000,- 
ooo  gallons;  1883,  8,500,000  gallons;  1884,  15,000,000 
gallons;  1885,  9,000,000  gallons;  1886,  18,000,000  gallons. 

The  crop  of  1887  is  estimated  at  about  16,000,000  gallons; 
although  there  is  a  largely  increased  acreage,  the  crop  was  cut 
short  in  many  sections  by  frost  and  coulure,  and  still  more  so 
by  the  prevailing  hot  weather  and  drying  winds  during  the 
vintage,  which  caused  the  grapes  to  dry  up  and  yield  much 
less  juice  to  the  ton  than  in  preceding  vintages;  from  one  hun- 
dred and  ten  to  one  hundred  and  twenty  gallons  to  the  ton 
being  the  average,  against  one  hundred  and  forty  to  one  hun- 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  859 

dred  and  fifty  gallons  last  year.  Of  this  crop  all  will  not  be 
merchantable  wine,  on  account  of  defective  fermentation,  and 
about  12,000,000  gallons  may  be  taken  as  a  fair  estimate  of 
sound  wines  ;  the  balance  will  have  to  be  made  into  port  and 
sweet  wines,  or  into  brandy.  Of  course,  it  is  too  early  yet  to 
make  a  correct  estimate,  but  this  may  be  taken  as  the  ap- 
proximate result. 

Besides,  the  decrease  will  be  mostly  in  the  counties  which 
produce  the  finest  light  table  wines,  Sonoma,  Napa  and 
Solano.  Napa,  which  produced  something  like  4,000.000 
gallons  last  year,  will  not  produce  much  more  than  2,000,000 
this  year,  so  that  those  who  produce  choice  wines,  will  find 
a  readv  sale  for  it,  and,  from  present  appearances,  at  re- 
munerative prices.  The  reports  during  the  last  three  years, 
in  the  six  months  ending  June  30th,  will  also  throw  some 
light  upon  the  increasing  consumption  of  California  wines. 
They  are  by  sea  and  rail,  as  follows  :  1885,  2,181,996  gal- 
lons; 1886,  3,227,354  gallons;  1887,  3,624,390  gallons, 
showing  an  increase  of  about  1,500,000  gallons  since  1885. 
As  it  stands  now,  according  to  the  nearest  estimates  that  can 
be  made  at  random,  the  home  consumption  is  about  5,000,- 
ooo  gallons;  export  trade,  4,500,000  gallons;  for  brandy, 
1,500,000  gallons;  total,  11,000,000  gallons,  which  would 
not  leave  much  in  first  hands,  perhaps  not  more  than  is  not 
fit  at  present  to  ship,  but  should  have  more  age  to  make  it 
really  saleable. 


360  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

WINE    AS    AN    ARTICLE    OF    COMMERCE. 

I  was  very  reluctant  to  say  anything  about  this  subject,  and 
hoped  to  obtain  an  article  from  a  gentleman  in  the  trade,  who 
is  more  versed  than  I  can  be.  As  he  is  prevented  however, 
from  contributing,  I  am  compelled  to  do  the  best  I  can  from 
what  information  I  have  been  able  to  gather  from  the  trade. 
I  shall  quote  from  such  sources  available  to  me,  and  take 
pleasure  in  presenting  an  extract  from  a  circular  of  Messrs. 
J.  Gundlach  &  Co.,  one  of  the  oldest  and  fairest  firms  in  the 
trade,  regarding  last  season's  vintage.  They  say,  Nov.  1886, 
'•*  one  of  the  most  successful  vintages  recorded  in  the  annals 
of  the  California  wine  industry  has  just  been  terminated  and 
we  take  great  pleasure  in  submitting  to  our  friends  our  views 
of  the  result,  and  a  condensed  report  of  the  present  and  pros- 
pective condition  of  our  wine  market. 

"The  weather,  during  the  entire  season,  proved  as  favorable 
as  could  be  wished  for.  No  early  or  late  frosts  ;  no  damaging 
winds,  coulure,  grasshoppers  or  other  unforeseen  mishaps  re- 
tarded the  development  of  the  grapes,  and  our  vintners  en- 
joyed al)  the  advantages  of  picking,  crushing  and  fermenting 
under  the  most  beneficial  atmospheric  conditions.  Our 
"musts"  indicated  from  23  to  26  per  cent  of  sugar,  with 
well-proportioned  amounts  of  acid,  and  give  promise,  there- 
fore, of  speedy  development  into  elegant  wines. 

"The  Burgundies,  Zinfandels  and  other  Clarets,  show  fine 
color,  (being  in  some  localities  probably  not  as  intensely  dark 
as  last  year),  but  they  are  faultless  in  fermentation  and  in 
every  other  respect.  This  observation  can  be  made  in  all 
wine  districts  from  North  to  South.  California's  cellars  never 


WINE-MAKING    IN    CALIFORNIA.  361 

represented  a  finer  selection  and  better  fermented  assortment 
of  young  wines,  than  at  the  close  of  the  present  season,  and 
the  future  will  undoubtedly  mention  this  bountiful  vintage  as 
the  famous  year  of  1886. 

"In  purchasing  grapes,  wine-makers  started  reluctantly  at  fair 
prices,  but  competition  soon  compelled  prices  as  high  as  last 
year.  Choice  varieties  were  readily  contracted,  and  generally 
sold  at  very  satisfactory  figures.  Ordinary  grades  were  left 
to  take  care  of  themselves  and  our  Brandy  Distillers  had  a 
splendid  opportunity  to  replenish  their  deficient  stock,  and 
considerable  brandy  will  enter  our  Bonded  Warehouse  during 
the  next  few  months. 

"We  feel  at  liberty  to  make  the  following  estimate  of  this 
year's  vintage  : 

Napa  County 4,800,000  gallons. 

Los  Angeles  and  San  Bernardino  Counties.  ....  4,200,000  " 

Sonoma  County 3,100,000  " 

Fresno  and  San  Joaquin  Counties 2,000,000  " 

Santa  Clara  and  Santa  Cruz  Counties 1,700,000  " 

Contra  Costa  and  Alaraeda  Counties 1 ,200,000  " 

Sacramento,  Tehama  and  Solano  Counties 2,000,000  " 

Placer,  Yuba,  Yolo  and  El  Dorado  Counties.. . .  500,000  " 


Total • 19,500,000  gallons. 

"A  portion  (about  one-seventh)  of  these  20  million  gallons 
(in  round  numbers)  has  already  been  or  is  rapidly  being  trans- 
formed into  brandy.  The  production  of  sweet  wines  has 
been  considerably  restricted  ;  prevailing  prices  appear  to  offer 
very  little  inducement  for  this  branch  of  our  industry.  Ports, 
sherries,  etc.,  will  therefore  not  be  very  plentiful.  The  pro- 
portion of  red  and  white  wines  will  probably  be  as  two  to  one. 

"The  abundant  crop  of  light  wines  of  1884  has  gradually 
found  its  way  into  the  hands  of  the  trade,  and  they  seem  to 
be  well  appreciated.  At  the  present  time,  absolutely  no 
stocks  of  any  consequence  of  }84's  and  '85*5  remain  in  grow- 


362  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

ers'  cellars.  San  Francisco  merchants  and  shippers  control 
the  bulk  of  old  stocks,  and  prices  rule  steady.  The  wines  of 
1885,  rich  and  full  in  body  and  color,  are  developing  slowly, 
and  will  be  late,  therefore,  in  entering  the  general  market  for 
consumption. 

"The  year's  business  has  been  very  satisfactory,  showing  an 
increase  of  about  two  million  gallons  over  last  year's  export 
trade,  and  indicating  even  better  progress  in  our  local  Cali- 
fornia trade  and  coast  shipments. 

"Great  fear  and  apprehension  have  heretofore  been  enter- 
tained of  over-production.  The  steady  increase  of  our  vine- 
yards, productiveness  of  soil  and  climate  threatened  to  over- 
balance the  healthy  equilibrium  of  supply  and  demand.  But, 
in  spite  of  prohibition  and  fanatical  temperance  agitation  in 
some  of  our  States  and  the  reluctancy  of  Congress  to  protect 
pure  wine  against  imitations  and  adulterations,  we  are  making 
progress  in  every  direction  —  we  carry  no  surplus  of  accumu- 
lated stocks — our  vineyardists  are  as  active  and  stirring  as  ever, 
and  we  all  are  confident  of  continued  success.  Lower  prices, 
cheaper  rates  of  freight,  a  very  noticeable  change  for  the  bet- 
ter in  the  average  quality  of  our  wines,  and  above  all,  their 
indisputable  purity  ;  all  these  facts  will  act  as  powerful  agents 
towards  a  rapid  extension  of  our  market  and  the  general 
distribution  and  introduction  of  California  wines." 

This,  together  with  the  statistics  given  before,  will  serve  to 
show  the  importance  of  wine  as  an  article  of  commerce.  But 
in  addition,  it  is  widening  its  sphere  of  consumption  every 
year,  new  markets  are  constantly  opened,  and  the  old  ones 
increase,  just  as  a  stone,  dropped  into  the  water,  increases  the 
circle  of  its  commotion,  so  does  good  wine  extend  its  market 
everywhere,  where  once  introduced. 

Our  shipment  lists  now  show  as  markets  for  our  wine,  all 
Eastern  cities,  Central  America,  Mexico,  Panama,  South 
America,  Germany,  Japan,  Honolulu,  Tahiti,  Belgium  and 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  363 

England.  Many  of  these  are  but  small  at  present,  but  they 
help  to  swell  the  aggregate,  and  if  the  wine  proves  satisfac- 
tory they  will  rapidly  increase;  California  itself  consumes  about 
6,000,000  gallons  annually,  and  if  we  take  into  account  its 
rapidly  growing  population,  it  is  safe  to  predict  that  the  home 
consumption  will  reach  10,000,000  annually,  within  five  years 
from  now.  The  increased  area  in  vines  has  been  nearly  al- 
together of  the  choicer  kinds;  con&quently,  with  increased 
knowledge  in  making  and  handling  it,  we  can  expect  a  much 
better  average  product  than  we  have  had  so  far.  Even  the 
low  prices  ruling  this  year  may  prove  a  benefit  in  the  end,  as 
it  has  forced  many  to  keep  and  store  their  wine,  thus  giving 
the  superior  product  of  1886  time  to  ripen  and  improve  by 
age.  Ours  is  not  a  product  that  will  deteriorate  and  loose, 
like  wheat  and  other  grain,  hops,  or  even  fruit.  It  is  well 
known  and  proven  that  long  sea  voyages  improve  wine  and 
develop  it,  consequently  there  is  less  risk  than  with  almost 
every  other  article  of  trade. 

France,  whose  vineyards  were  her  main  stay,  now  does  not 
produce  enough  for  home  consumption,  and  must  rely  on  Italy, 
Hungary  and  Spain,  for  the  supplies  to  keep  up  her  export 
trade,  and — on  the  wine  doctors  art.  We  are  now  steadily 
encroaching  on  her  trade  on  this  continent,  and  there  is  no 
reason  why  we  should  not  be  able  to  supply  all  the  foreign 
importations.  Thousands  of  gallons  of  California  wine  are 
now  sold  annually  under  foreign  labels.  May  we  not  confi- 
dently hope  that  this  will" cease  sometime,  and  that  California's 
wines  will  be  sought,  just  because  they  are  Californian  !  There 
seems  good  reason  for  the  fulfilment  of  this. 


364  GRAPE  CULTURE    AND 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

WINE    AS    A    TEMPERANCE    AGENT. 

This  may  seem  a  strange  heading  to  our  total  abstinence 
people,  who  see  in  wine  only  an  enemy  in  disguise,  not  quite 
so  intoxicating  but  therefor  all  the  more  dangerous,  than 
whiskey  or  brandy.  Yet  the  greater  part  of  their  aversions 
would  vanish,  if  they  would  for  a  moment  enquire  into  the 
condition,  morally  and  physically,  of  the  nations  in  Europe 
who  use  wine  as  their  daily  drink,  and  those  who  use  distilled 
liquors  largely.  They  would  find  sobriety,  health,  good  tem- 
per and  merriment  prevailing  in  those  countries  where  wine  is 
the  daily  drink  ;  and  desolation,  physical  ruin  and  wretched- 
ness among  the  lower  classes,  where  distilled  liquor  is  about 
the  only  consolation  of  the  poor  ;  a  wretched  one  indeed,  I 
grant  them,  but  still  too  often  resorted  to,  to  deaden  the  feel- 
ing of  utter  despair  and  desolation  of  the  outcasts  of  Society. 

Then  their  objections  arise  in  some  degree  from  misconcep- 
tion. They  have  learned  to  know  as  "  wine  "  only  those  de- 
leterious compounds,  which  are  brought  on  the  market  as 
Sweet  Catawba,  Angelica,  Port  and  Sherry,  often  only  mix- 
tures of  logwood,  syrup,  and  alcohol,  and  which  are  about  as 
strong  and  far  more  injurious  than  whiskey  or  brandy;  sweet- 
ened so  as  to  disguise  the  bad  liquor  they  contain,'  and  which 
bring  an  overdose  of  dullness,  headache,  and  intoxication  to 
all  the  unfortunates  who  may  partake  of  them.  Let  me  be 
understood,  once  for  all,  that  I  do  not  call  such  stuff  wine, 
and  that  it  is  as  different  in  its  effects  from  pure  light  wine, 
with  only  ten  per  cent,  of  alcohol,  its  pleasant  acidity,  fine 
flavor,  and  enlivening  and  invigorating  effect  on  body  and 
mind,  than  quinine  is  from  a  fine  Mocha  or  Imperial.  I  am 


WINK-MAKINC;   I X  ('. \LIFORNIA.  365 

referring,  when  I  speak  of  wine,  to  the  "cup  that  cheers,  but 
not  inebriates,"  provided  always  that  it  is  used  in  moderation, 
as  sensible  men  and  women  should  use  it.  I  speak  of  the 
wine  our  Savior  Himself  consecrated  and  ordained  to  be  used 
at  His  holy  supper;  and  we  may  point  to  Him  with  just  pride 
as  the  most  illustrious  wine  maker,  to  promote  innocent  hilar- 
ty  at  the  wedding  of  Cana.  Our  temperance  friends  certainly 
forget  this,  when  they  claim  to  be  His  followers,  yet  condemn 
in  the  same  breath  the  cup  which  He  has  anointed  to  be  used 
to  perpetuate  His  memory  on  earth. 

But  it  is  not  to  Him  alone  that  we  can  refer.  St.  Paul 
says  to  Thimothy,  "Use  a  little  wine  for  thy  stomach's  sake, 
and  for  thine  oft  infirmity."  And  I  could  refer  them  to  many 
more  passages  in  holy  writ  to  show  how  fallacious  their  theory 
that  the  scriptures  forbid  its  use.  Luther,  the  very  type  of 
vigorous  and  independent  manhood,  the  great  reformer  of  the 
church,  says,  "Who  loves  not  wine,  women  and  song,  remains 
a  fool  his  whole  life  long."  This  offers  some  excuse  for  those 
who  forget  all  justice  and  right  when  they  try  to  deprive  all 
of  its  use  because  a  few  abuse  it.  Surely,  Luther  did  not  go 
down  to  a  drunkard's  grave,  nor  was  he  ever  accused  of  drunk- 
eness;  and  I  know  of  not  one  of  the  eminent  reformers  who 
interdicted  the  use  of  wine,  as  these  would-be  "latter  day 
Saints"  do. 

"  To  the  pure  all  things  are  pure,"  and  he  who  uses  wine  in 
moderation,  good,  pure  wine,  such  as  I  try  to  show  my 
readers  how  to  make  and  handle,  will  certainly  have  too  great 
a  respect  for  one  of  the  choicest  gifts  of  Heaven  to  mankind 
to  abuse  it.  We  have  brought  up  a  family  of  six,  four  girls 
and  two  boys,  all  grown  now;  they  have  had  free  access  to 
wine  from  babies  up,  and  drink  it  daily  ;  but  none  of  them 
have  ever  shown  a  disposition  to  abuse  it,  although  the  oldest 
son  has  had  charge  of  a  cellar  for  over  four  years,  and  is  now 
cellar  master  over  the  white  wine  department  of  Gov.  Stan- 


366  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

ford's  vineyard  at  Vina.  But  I  know  many  hopeful  young 
men,  whose  parents  anxiously  guarded  them  against  taking  a 
glass  of  wine,  and  forbid  its  use,  who  now,  when  they  are  no 
longer  controlled  by  them,  are  becoming  drunkards  and  sots 
on  bad  whiskey  and  other  abominations.  It  is  the  old,  old 
story  of  the  "forbidden  fruit  being  the  sweetest." 

None  of  our  so  called  temperance,  (rather  total  abstinence, 
however,  which  is  far  from  temperance)  can  be  more  averse 
to  drunkenness  than  I  am.  I  hate  drunkenness,  and  I  de- 
spise and  pity  its  victims  more  than  words  can  tell.  But  be- 
cause I  would  like  to  see  this  great  nation  a  temperate  one  al- 
so, I  firmly  believe  that  the  total  abstinence  fanatics  are 
wrong,  and  that  only  by  the  moderate  use  of  pure  light  wine 
we  can  ever  hope  to  make  it  so.  Human  nature  is  so  con- 
stituted that  it  craves  a  stimulant  of  some  kind  to  keep  up  its 
faculties  in  the  wear  and  tear  of  daily  business  life.  This  na- 
tion has  more  dyspeptics  among  its  business  men  than  any 
other,  England,  perhaps,  excepted.  And  why?  Because 
our  business  men  use  no  moderation;  they  work  until  nature 
is  exhausted,  then  rush  off  to  lunch  or  supper,  swallow  a  glass 
of  whiskey  or  brandy  hastily  at  the  counter  of  some  bar,  and 
then  rush  back  to  their  business.  Is  it  not  a  natural  conse- 
quence of  such  a  life  that  they  feel  the  need  of  stimulants, 
use  them  at  first,  find  temporary  relief  and  excitement  from 
them,  and  end  by  repeating  their  doses  too  often,  by  ruining 
their  stomachs,  and  go  to  the  grave  before  their  time,  or 
rather  at  a  time,  when  the  business  men  of  other  nations  be- 
gin to  enjoy  life. 

If,  instead  of  this,  we  had  restaurants  which  were  wine 
houses  at  the  same  time,  where  our  business  men  could  ob- 
tain their  meals,  take  their  friends  with  them,  have  a  choice 
bottle  of  wine  with  their  lunch,  and  take  it  with  and  at  their 
meals,  when  it  would  help  by  its  pleasant  acid  and  other  en- 
livening qualities  to  digest  it,  take  at  least  half  an  hour  for 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  367 

social  chat,  and  throw  away  business  cares,  it  would  be  a  rest 
and  recreation  to  them,  instead  of  a  mere  process  to  keep 
body  and  soul  together,  as  it  is  now.  I  am  glad  to  see  that 
some  of  our  restaurants  and  hotels  have  already  commenced 
this;  and  that  a  fair  bottle  or  half  bottle  of  wine  can  be  had 
with  their  meals.  But  we  also  want  houses  which  keep  the  best 
of  California's  products,  at  a  good  price  if  you  please;  so  that 
every  true  Californian  can  invite  a  friend  from  abroad,  whom 
he  may  have  with  him,  to  a  glass  of  wine  which  is  a  true 
representative  of  our  industry,  and  to  which  he  can  point  with 
pride  as  the  product  of  our  State;  a  State  of  which  we  have 
such  just  reason  to  be  proud,  as  the  noblest  and  the  brightest, 
the  State  where  milk  and  honey  flow,  an4  where  every  one 
can  sit  "  under  his  own  vine  and  fig  tree." 

There  are  two  crying  evils  in  this  State  yet,  however, 
which  ought  to  be  abolished  as  soon  as  possible;  and  such 
wine  houses  as  before  mentioned  would  do  a  great  deal,  and 
prove  the  initiatory  steps  to  their  eradication.  One  is  the 
senseless  and  altogether  unjustifiable  practice  in  our  saloon,  to 
keep  about  the  poorest  and  lowest  priced  wine  they  can  ob- 
tain, a  wine  that  costs  them  not  more  than  35  cents  per  gal- 
lon, and  sell  it  to  their  customers  at  10  cents  per  glass,  taking 
good  care  to  furnish  the  smallest  glasses  they  can  get  besides,, 
so  that  what  costs  them  35  cents,  is  retailed  to  their  customers 
at  $6.00  per  gallon.  These  exorbitant  rates  deter  nearly 
every  one  from  drinking  wine,  a  bottle  is  broken  into,  stands 
tor  a  day  opened,  and  if  the  wine  had  any  quality  before,  it  is 
apt  to  loose  it  entirely,  before  another  is  willing  to  pay  ten 
cents  for  such  stuff.  This  brings  our  wine  into  bad  repute,, 
and  works  directly  against  its  consumption  and  use. 

The  other  is  the  prevailing  custom  of  "  treating."  Four  or 
five  men  are  called  to  the  bar  by  a  friend  to  "  take  a  drink,"' 
for  which  he  pays.  The  others  feel  under  a  sort  of  moral 
obligation  to  do  likewise;  and  so  five  or  six  drinks  are  swal- 

24 


GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 


lowed,  very  often  against  their  inclination,  but  simply  because 
no  one  wishes  to  appear  mean  or  stingy,  and  some  of  them 
feel  "elevated"  as  they  call  it,  before  the  round  is  fairly 
made.  Many  a  young  man  is  thus  led  into  the  paths  of  dis- 
sipation, because  he  does  not  "want  to  be  behind."  If  we 
had  good,  respectable  wine  houses  or  wine  rooms,  where  they 
could  sit  at  a  table,  have  a  bottle  of  wine  between  them,  or 
several,  of  which  each  paid  his  share,  they  would  derive  more 
enjoyment,  it  would  cost  much  less,  and  they  would  depart 
sober.  This  is  the  custom  in  Europe,  and  the  people  are 
better  contented  and  more  sober  over  it.  Treating  is  an 
American  custom,  but  one  of  which  we  have  little  reason  to  be 
proud,  and  which,  as  a  progressive  people,  we  ought  to 
abolish. 

The  saloons  which  act  directly  against  our  interests  as  be- 
fore mentioned,  we  should  leave  severely  alone.  We  can 
never  hope  to  be  a  prosperous  and  sober  people,  as  long  as 
we  let  them  take  the  advantage  of  us,  and  of  the  wine  drink- 
ing community,  in  such  a  manner.  In  Napa  valley,  nearly 
every  one  can  buy  from  the  producer  good,  wholesome  white 
wine  or  claret,  in  five  gallon  kegs,  attwenty-five  cents  per  gal- 
lon, or  five  cents  per  bottle.  Let  each  family  take  a  five-gal- 
lon keg,  bottle  it,  and  drink  it  at  home,  instead  of  paying  $6 
per  gallon  to  the  saloon  keeper  for  wine,  or  for  stale  beer  at 
-$3  per  gallon.  It  is  as  cheap  as  tea  or  coffee,  even  cheaper, 
they  can  all  enjoy  it  at  lunch  or  supper,  and  it  will  certainly 
do  them  more  good,  and  be  better  than  the  average  they  get 
at  the  saloons.  And  when  it  is  so  abundant  and  cheap,  so 
easily  attainable,  there  is  no  cause  for  its  improper  use  or 
abuse,  the  children  will  learn  to  drink  it  as  part  of  their  daily 
diet,  and  there  will  be  no  craving  for  more  than  is  good  for 
them.  Wine,  unlike  other  alcoholic  liquors,  does  not,  in  its 
natural  light  state,  create  the  craving  for  more,  as  whiskey  or 
brandy  does.  It  quenches  thirst,  helps  digestion,  enlivens 


WINE-MAKING  IN   CALIFORNIA.  369 

and  invigorates.  A  glass  of  wine  early  in  the  morning,  I  have 
found  an  unfailing  preventative  against  Malaria,  have  used  it 
for  thirty-five  years  now,  in  preference  to  quinine  or  whiskey, 
and  with  better  results. 

I  have  worked  in  the  cause  of  true  temperance,  as  I  under- 
stand it,  which  is  "moderation  in  everything,"  nearly  a  life 
time,  and  if  I  did  not  believe  that  wine  was  the  best  temper- 
ance agent  that  we  can  employ,  but  apt  to  lead  t$>  drunken- 
ness, I  would  quit  the  business  at  once,  so  great  is  my  desire 
to  see  the  American  people  the  greatest  and  the  freest  on 
earth,  which  they  can  only  be  if  they  become  also  the  most 
sober  nation.  I  see  in  the  free  and  moderate  use  of  light 
wine  the  only  help  and  salvation  for  us,  and  the  best  element 
to  further  us  in  every  progressive  step  we  take.  I  have  grown 
up  among  its  people,  helped  to  defend  it  in  times  of  war,  and 
hope  to  die  on,  and  be  buried  in,  its  free  soil.  To  contribute 
my  mite  to  its  true  progress,  has  been  the  dream  of  my  youth, 
the  fond  ambition  of  riper  years.  And  now,  when  the  snows 
of  lifes  winter  begin  to  gather  on  my  head,  I  still  look  forth  to 
our  beloved  industry  to  help  make  it  what  it  seems  to  me 
destined  to  be,  the  soberest,  the  freest,  the  happiest,  and  the 
greatest  nation  on  earth.  It  may  be  but  the  dream  of  an 
enthusiast,  and  I  may  not  see  its  fullfilment,  but  I  have  abid- 
ing faith  in  the  ultimate  result.  Let  me  not  be  misunder- 
stood, however.  I  am  with  the  promoters  of  true  temperance 
in  every  just  and  legal  means  they  can  apply,  to  prevent  and 
abolish  drunkenness.  I  am  in  favor  of  the  most  stringent 
laws  against  it.  Let  us  make  drunkenness  a  crime,  and  pun- 
ish it  as  such.  Let  every  man  who  is  found  in  a  state  of  in- 
toxication, be  punished  as  a  criminal  against  the  laws  of  God 
and  mankind,  let  the  finger  of  scorn  and  contumely  be  pointed 
at  him  as  an  outcast  from  the  [society  of  decent  men  and 
women,  and  the  vice  made  a  by-word  and  reproach  through- 
out the  land,  as  a  disgrace  on  the  fair  face  of  humanity. 


370  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

But  I  deny  that  you  have  a  right  to  punish  the  innocent  with 
the  guilty  ;  a  right  to  control  the  free  and  sober  citizens  of 
this  republic  from  the  enjoyment  of  a  pure  healthy  glass  of 
wine,  beneficial  to  them,  and  necessary  to  their  well  being, 
because  some  of  their  neighbors  get  drunk  on  bad  whisky, 
and  even  on  wine.  Where  would  be  our  boasted  liberties,  if 
one  man  was  punished  for  the  crime  of  another  ?  Can  I  be 
held  responsible  for  my  neighbor's  actions,  and  should  I  be 
punished  because  he  makes  a  beast  of  himself?  Out  on  such 
narrow  mindedness,  which  can  bear  neither  the  test  of  com- 
mon justice  and  fairness,  nor  of  our  constitution.  Every  pro- 
hibitory measure  is  an  infringement  of  justice  as  well,  as  of 
'the  supreme  law  of  the  land. 

I  wish  to  see  every  man  or  woman  a  free  agent,  subject 
only,  if  he  or  she  infringes  the  laws,  which  ought  to  be  and 
are,  based  on  fairness  and  right,  to  be  punished  according  to 
these  laws.  And  let  me  tell  those,  who  wish  to  shackle  us  by 
binding  them  according  to  their  narrow  prejudices,  that  if 
they  desire  really  to  see  this  a  sober  and  prosperous  nation, 
they  can  sooner  gain  their  object  by  making  this  nation  a 
wine  drinking  community,  then  by  all  the  cast  iron  measures 
they  may  invent  to  compel  an  abstinence,  which  will  only 
lead  to  greater  excess.  Teach  the  nation  the  proper  use  of 
light  wines,  instead  of  raving  against  their  abuse,  and  you  will 
do  more  for  the  cause  of  true  temperance,  in  five  years,  than 
you  can  do  by  prohibitory  laws  in  a  century. 


WINE-MAKING    IN   CALIFORNIA.  371 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 

THE  FUTURE  OF  THE  INDUSTRY. 

I  do  not  claim  to  be  a  prophet,  nor  the  son  of  one,  there- 
for all  predictions  of  the  future  must  be  guess  work  to  a  cer- 
tain extent.  But  when  I  look  at  the  incipient  beginnings 
scarcely  forty-five  years  ago,  with  no  knowledge  of  varieties, 
mode  of  treatment  and  culture,  no  knowledge  of  wine  making 
here  :  and  then  consider  the  results  already  obtained  during 
that  short  period,  I  cannot  but  feel  the  brighest  hopes  for  the 
future.  We  have  the  finest  climate  in  the  world  for  the 
growth  of  grapes,  we  are  sure  of  their  maturing  every  season  ; 
we  know  of  no  total  failures,  we  are  gaining  in  experience  every 
year,  our  skill  and  knowledge  increases,  we  have  American 
ingenuity  and  enterprise,  with  the  industry  of  the  German, 
French  and  Portuguese  ;  in  short,  the  intellects  and  muscular 
strength  of  all  nations  engaged  in  the  busines  ;  —  why  should 
we  not  make  it  a  grand  success,  and  claim  the  world  for  a 
market,  as  the  French  have  done  for  their  clarets  and  cham- 
pagne, the  Germans  for  their  Hock  and  Moselle,  the  Spaniards 
and  the  Portuguese  for  their  Ports  and  Sherries  ?  We  can 
make  all  these,  and  as  good  as  they  can,  if  we  only  apply  our- 
selves to  the  task.  We  have  an  immense  territory  adapted  to 
the  successful  growth  of  the  vine  ;  our  raisin  makers  have 
proven  already  that  they  can  produce  as  good  raisins  as  any 
country,  and  we  can  raise  better,  more  attractive  and  cheaper 
shipping  grapes,  which  will  keep  better  with  proper  treatment 
than  those  of  any  country,  and  for  which  we  have  a  market 
on  this  continent.  What  should  hinder  us  from  becoming 
the  greatest  grape  growing  nation  on  earth  ?  France  had 
reached  a  production  of  one  billion  five  hundred  million  gal- 


372  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

Ions  per  annum,  until  the  phylloxera  devastated  her  vineyards 
for  all  of  which  she  found  a  market,  at  home  and  abroad. 
What  is  our  annual  production  say  15,000,000  gallons,  com- 
pared with  this  ?  Yet  we  claim  that  we  have  more  territory 
adapted  to  the  successful  growth  of  grapes  than  France.  Yet 
we  talk  of  over  production,  and  we  may  have  it  until  neces- 
sity compels  us  to  put  forth  our  best  energies  and  intellect,  to 
develop  new  markets  and  extend  the  old,  to  produce  the  best 
of  every  class,  until  we  can  proudly  say,  that"  we  are  ahead  of 
them  all,  as  we  should  be.  We  have  capital  enough  laying 
idle  in  the  State  ;  it  can  surely  find  a  better  and  safer  invest- 
ment in  our  products,  than  in  wheat  or  grain.  But  we  must 
convince  them  of  this  first.  We  are  just  now  in  a  transitory 
state  ;  from  the  first  crude  beginnings  we  emerged  at  once  in- 
to a  condition  of  great  prosperity,  when  the  demand  exceeded 
the  supply,  and  our  merchants  had  to  buy  anything  they  could 
find,  to  meet  it,  and  pay  comparatively  high  prices  for  wines  and 
grapes.  This  encouraged  every  body,  Tom,  Dick  and  Harry, 
to  go  into  vineyards  ;  the  capitalist  thought  it  a  fine  invest- 
ment for  his  ready  cash,  the  laborer  for  his  muscle,  and  the 
small  means  a  few  years  of  toil  had  enabled  him  to  lay  back;, 
few  of  them  with  any  practical  knowledge,  or  an  idea  how 
long  it  would  take  to  realize.  That  this  should  create  a  mo- 
mentary production  of  inferior  grades,  is  but  natural.  That 
it  should  also  shake  the  confidence  of  a  great  many,  who 
looked  only  at  the  immediate  results  of  their  own  thoughtless- 
ness, could  also  be  expected.  Viticulture  is  not  a  mere  side 
show,  or  an  occupation  to  fill  an  idle  hour  ;  nor  will  success 
come  at  the  mere  expense  of  money  vdthout  thought.  It  is 
an  occupation  which  demands,  as  much  or  more  so  as  any 
other,  close  application,  constant  attention  and  work  of  brain 
as  well  as  hand.  Thousands  may  and  will  get  tired  of  it,  drop 
by  the  way  side,  and  make  room  in  the  ranks  for  those  better 
fitted  than  they  were  ;  but  we  are  better  off  without  them. 


WINE-MAKING  IN    CALIFORNIA.  373 

Those  who  persevere,  who  have  for  their  motto  *  'Excelsior, " 
whom  no  momentary  reverse  can  repress,  no  obstacle  discour- 
age, who  love  the  occupation,  not  alone  for  the  pecuniary 
gain  it  may  bring,  but  who  delight  in  the  very  labor  it  costs 
them,  will  be  sure  to  meet  with  success  in  the  end. 

We  have  a  number  of  new  enterprises  to  aid  our  industry, 
which  have  just  sprung  into  life.  Wine  storage  houses,  con- 
centration of  must,  and  a  number  of  new  firms  going  into  the 
trade,  with  better  and  cheaper  facilities  for  shipping.  Some 
of  these  may  not  be  successful  at  first;  there  are  difficulties 
to  overcome  in  every  new  industry,  but  they  will  be  success- 
ful in  the  end,  and  if  some  should  fail,  because  not  fitted  for 
the  task,  others  will  take  it  up  and  succeed.  Better  methods 
to  make  and  age  our  wines  will  be  found,  the  wants  of 
peculiar  localities  and  the  adaptation  of  their  products  to  cer- 
tain classes  of  wine  will  be  clearly  defined,  and  with  each 
succeeding  year  we  will  be  better  prepared  and  qualified 
for  the  next. 

Therefore  I  can  see  no  ground  for  discouragement,  no  rea- 
son why  we  should  not  say  to  those  who  are  willing  to  make 
this  State  their  home,  and  labor  with  us  with  hand  and  brain 
and  steadfast  purpose,  "  Come  and  join  us;"  we  have  mil- 
lions of  acres  yet  laying  idle,  which  will  yield  their  smiling 
returns  to  you,  and  offer  a  healthy  and  pleasant  field  for  you 
and  your  children. 

Our  State  authorities  and  State  institutions  see  the  im- 
portance of  the  industry  and  are  willing  to  help  it  along. 
We  have  the  State  Board  of  Viticulture,  the  Agricultural 
College  at  the  State  University,  the  State  Wine  Growers' 
Association,  and  the  numerous  local  clubs,  all  doing  good 
work  in  their  proper  sphere,  and  co-operating  to  make  our 
fund  of  common  knowledge  greater  and  more  available  to 
every  individual  by  their  instructive  publications.  And  we 
have  the  Press  with  us;  we  must  not  forget,  but  gratefully  re- 


374  GRAPE   CULTURE   AND 

« 

member  that  they  have  not  failed  to  speak  a  good  word  for 
our  occupation,  and  distributed  all  the  knowledge  they  could 
collect,  to  our  readers. 

Why,  with  all  these  advantages,  should  we  not  reach,  at 
the  beginning  of  the  new  century,  a  production  of  seventy-five 
million  gallons,  instead  of  sixteen  million  now,  and  be  able 
to  find  a  ready  market  for  them,  while  our  raisins  and  table 
grapes  have  driven  those  of  other  nations  from  our  markets 
on  this  continent.  They  belong  to  us  by  right,  as  soon  as 
we  can  furnish  as  good  a  product,  and  we  ought  to  occupy 
them.  That  we  will  do  so  eventually,  is  my  firm  belief;  I 
hope  that  the  sun  of  1900  may  rise  on  the  most  prosperous 
wineland  the  world  ever  saw,  on  the  most  prosperous,  happy 
and  sober  commonwealth  on  the  shores  of  the  Pacific,  the 
Golden  State  of  California,  richer  in  her  golden  wine  and 
fruits  than  its  mines  ever  made  it. 

Reader,  my  task  is  ended.  If  this  little  volume,  which 
has  cost  the  author  many  an  anxious  hour  and  thought  by  day 
and  night,  should  help  to  bring  about  this  glorious  result, and 
you  should  think  as  kindly  of  him,  as  he  does  of  all  his  vit- 
icultural  brethren,  he  is  nobly  paid,  though  he  may  then  rest 
in  California's  soil,  removed  from  all  earthly  labors.  But  as 
long  as  life  is  spared  him,  it  will  be  devoted  to  our  noble  in- 
dustry, with  a  love  that  never  falters  or  fails. 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  375 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

WINE  SONGS. 

"  Wine  makes  glad  the  heart  of  man."  It  is  therefore  not 
surprising  that  all  wine  producing  nations  have  had  poets  who 
have  glorified  their  favorite  beverage  in  song,  and  that  singing 
and  merriment  prevails  during  the  vintage.  But  none  has 
more  of  them  than  Germany,  the  fatherland  of  song;  while 
America  is  singularly  deficient  in  them,  and  as  far  as  I  know, 
California,  the  coming  "Vineland  "  of  the  old  legend,  has  not 
yet  produced  any.  Let  us  hope  that  the  innocent  hilarity, 
the  poetic  sentiment  which  good  wine  inspires,  will  induce 
some  of  our  poets  to  immortalize  themselves  and  glorify  their 
State  and  its  noblest  product  in  song.  My  poetic  vein,  If  I 
ever  had  one,  has  long  ceased  to  flow,  or  I  would  try.  But 
at  the  conclusion  of  a  book  devoted  to  grape  culture  and  wine 
making,  I  cannot  forego  the  pleasure  of  quoting  a  few  transla- 
tions of  German  wine  songs,  nearly  as  good  as  the  original, 
and  hope  that  in  the  next  "improved  and  enlarged  edition," 
if  this  little  volume  should  meet  with  favor  enough  to  need 
one,  I  can  have  the  pleasure  to  add  some  California  lyric,  by 
native  poets. 

FATHER  NOAH,  THE  FIRST  WINE  GROWER. 

When  Noah  left  his  floating  frame, 

Our  Lord  to  Father  Noah  came ; 

He  prized  his  pious  offering, 

And  spake:  "Thou'st  done  a  goodly  thing, 

And,  to  reward  thy  piety, 

Thou  may'st  e'en  choose  a  boon  from  me." 


376  GRAPE  CULTURE  AND 

Then  to  the  Lord  old  Noah  said : 

"  The  water  now  tastes  rather  bad, 

The  whilst  there  have  been  drowned  therein 

All  beasts  and  mankind  in  their  sin  ; 

'Tis,  therefore,  Lord,  I  even  think, 

I  should  prefer  some  other  drink." 

Whereat  the  Lord  to  Eden  went, 

And  brought  him  thence  the  grape  vine's  plant 

And  gave  him  counsel  and  advice 

To  tend  this  shrub  of  Paradise, 

And  bid  him  nurse  it  carefully;  — 

It  pleased  old  Noah  wondrously  ! 

He  made  a  solemn  household  call, 
And  summoned  wife  and  child  and  all, 
And  planted  vines,  where'er  they'd  grow  ; 
Forsooth,  old  Noah  was  not  slow, — 
He  pressed  the  grape  and  built  a  cave, 
And  put  it  into  casks  to  save. 

Old  Noah,  grateful  for  the  boon, 

Cask  upon  cask  did  open  soon, 

And  with  sincerest  piety 

Did  empty  them  most  willingly, 

And  drank  yet,  since  the  flood  was  o'er, 

Three  hundred  years,  and  fifty  more. 

This  to  each  prudent  man  does  show 
From  drinking  wine  no  harm  can  flow, 
And  Christian  folks  it  warns  more  o'er, 
No  water  in  their  wine  to  pour, 
The  whilst  there  have  been  drowned  therein 
All  beasts  and  mankind  in  their  sin. 

From  the  German  of  Kopish,  translated  by  I.  A.  Schmidt. 


WINE-MAKING   IN   CALIFORNIA.  377 

[German  Text  by  Gruner.    Translated  by  J.  A.  Smith.] 
NOAH'S   LEGACY. 

When  Noah  felt  approach  his  end 
He  said :  "  I'll  make  my  testament." 
He  counted  over  all  his  stocks, 
His  cattle,  donkeys,  goats  and  bucks ; 
The  sheep,  camels,  and  all  the  rest 
With  which  so  richly  he  was  blessed. 

This  done  he  said,  "  I  wish  to  see 
At  once  my  friend  the  Notary." 
To  him,  he  spoke,  "  You  shall  divide 
My  property.     Now  do  it  right ; 
Let  all  my  children  have  their  share, 
And  take  yourself  what's  just  and  fair." 

Thus  they  divided  all.     But  still, 
Before  the  lawyer  signed  the  will, 
(He  was,  as  clerks  in  average, 
Fond  of  a  pleasant  beverage.) 
He  said :  "  But  now,  beloved  sir, 
Who  of  your  Wine  shall  be  the  heir  ?" 

Said  Noah  :  "  In  daylight  and  here 
We  can't  decide  that  question,  dear  ! 
Let  to  the  cellar  us  descend, 
And  see,  how  there  the  case  may  stand. 
Don't  fear  pains  !  "     "  What  my  duty^is," 
The  lawyer  said,  "  I  never  miss."  . 

A  generous  man  old  Noah  was, 

And  freely  filled  the  lawyers  glass. 

They  drew  a  sample  every  where ; 

They  tasted  here,  they  tasted  there, 

And  when  they  had  the  stock  gone  through, 

Took  an  inventory  anew. 

Back  came  to  Noah  youth  and  life, 

He  thought  no  more  of  child  and  wife. 

"  Dear  friend,"  said  he,  "  now  put  that  down, 


378  GRAPE  CULTURE   AND 

And  head  it  with  a  golden  crown  ; 
Of  all  the  wine  which  here  you  see, 
The  Human  Race  the  heir  shall  be." 

No  death  bell !     Let  the  goblets  ring ! 
And  jolly  boys  my  requiem  sing. 
Each  cask  filled  with  the  golden  wine, 
Shall  be  a  monument  of  mine. 
Write  this  and  make,  dear  notary, 
Eternal  thus  my  memory." 

The  following  acquires  a  peculiar  significance  to  me,  as  I 
look  back  through  the  past,  and  think  of  the  genial  spirit  now 
laid  at  rest,  old  te  Father  Muench  "  as  he  was  familiarly  called 
by  his  friends.  One  of  the  pioneers  of  German  descent,  in 
Missouri,  who  served  his  adopted  State  in  her  legislative  halls 
as  well,  and  by  his  numerous  writings  in  various  fields  of 
literature,  with  all  the  enthusiasm  of  a  polished  and  patriotic 
soul,  he  was  one  of  the  first  who  followed  the  then  new  in- 
dustry of  grape  culture,  and  his  earliest  beginnings  date  back 
to  1846.  His  "  American  Vintners  School,"  a  text  book  for 
the  beginner,  attained  a  deserved  popularity,  and  was  trans- 
lated from  the  German,  in  which  language  it  was  originally 
written.  Warm  personal  friends  as  we  were,  I  often  had  the 
pleasure  of  meeting  him  among  the  vines,  and  at  his  own 
pleasant  homestead.  At  my  farewell  visit  in  1881,  he  ex- 
pressed the  wish  to  t(  die  in  harness,"  without  any  previous 
illness.  This  wish  was  gratified  by  an  all  wise  Providence. 
He  was  found  among  his  beloved  vines/  one  pleasant  winter's 
morning,  dead,  with  the  pruning  shears  yet  in  his  hand,  in 
his  84th  year.  Peace  be  to  his  memory.  One  of  the  best 
and  most  genial  of  men,  he  yet  lives  in  the  grateful  remem- 
brance of  his  many  friends. 


WINE-MAKING  IN  CALIFORNIA.  379 

AMERICAN  VINTNERS  SONG. 

BY   FREDERICK   MUENCH   (FAR  WEST.) 
[Translated  from  the  German  by  Mrs.  Wistar.] 

Plant  the  vine,  plant  the  vine ! 
Gen'rous  font  of  ruby  wine; 
In  the  sunlight  gladly  playing 
Richly  all  your  toil  repaying, 
Will  the  smiling  clusters  shine. 

Eve  and  dawn,  eve  and  dawn, 
Still  must  find  us  working  on, 
Digging,  pruning,  cutting,  binding, 
Round  their  props  the  tendrils  winding 
Sweet  .the  mete  of  labor  done. 

Sun  and  air,  sun  and  air  ! 
Leafy  green,  and  odors  fair ; 
Then  the  berries,  luscious  treasure 
Fill  the  inmost  soul  with  pleasure, 
Leaves  and  fruit  and  blossoms  fair. 

Then  at  last,  then  at  last ! 

Left  below,  our  labors  past, 

Let  us,  o'er  the  mountains  straying 

Where  the  air's  mild  breath  is  playing 

Down  the  vale  our  glances  cast. 

Gather  in,  gather  in  ! 

Let  our  harvest  now  begin  ; 

Now  the  purple  juice,  dark,  glowing. 

Full  and  free  in  streams  is  flowing, 

Young  and  old,  come  gather  in. 

Hear  it  foam,  hear  it  foam  ! 
Surging  in  its  narrow  home, 
Let  it  seethe  and  bubble  rightly 
Till  it  sparkles  clear  and  brightly 
Here,  within  its  narrow  home. 


380  GRAPE   CULTURE    AND 

Now  come  on,  now  come  on  ! 
For  our  hardest  task  is  done, 
Now  we  pour  the  wines  rich  treasure, 
Gods  might  envy  us  the  pleasure, 
Clink  your  glasses  every  one. 

Freedoms  land,  freedoms  land  ! 
Where  anew  my  home  I  planned 
Lo !  I  drink  to  thee,  brave  nation, 
Comrades,  join  in  this  ovation 


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